Of New York Girls and Basketball
by Lady Harlequin
Summary: *CHAPTER 15 UP* Kogure's penpal from NYC comes to visit, along with five of her other friends. And when they DO come, they turn the worlds of our fave characters upside-down. PLS R&R!!
1. Prologue: Emails

Of New York Girls and Basketball 

By: Lady Harle

_A Slam Dunk Fanfic_

DISCLAIMER: Slam Dunk is NOT MINE, and never will be! I'm just borrowing the guys from their owners for a while so I can have some fun. They are the property of Takehiko Inoue and Toei Animation. However, Erin, Ciel, Aleine, Jesse, CJ and Melina are MINE (sorta…), and you cannot use them without my or my friends' permission.

NOTE: This takes place somewhere between the time after the game against Takezato and before the game with Shoyo, and goes on from there. And any e-mails addresses in the prologue ABSOLUTELY DO NOT exist in reality! Don't even TRY to send mail to them, coz you won't get any replies.

EMAIL: ladyharley2002@hotmail.com

SUMMARY: Six girls suddenly make an appearance in Kanagawa, and turn the world of high school basketball upside-down. These girls will play basketball willingly – but only against boys. This has caught many people in Kanagawa by surprise, especially the teams of Shohoku, Ryonan, Shoyo and Kainan. In the meantime, it seems that Mr. Anzai has a plan, a plan that just might win them the Inter-High championship, and if all goes well, maybe even the Nationals…

Prologue: E-mails 

TO: shiawase@yahoo.com

FROM: stives@aol.com

SUBJECT: Summer Trippin'!!

Hey, what's goin' on? How're your classes coming along? Me? I'm going okay. In fact, I recently graduated from high school! *jumps up and down while blowing noisemaker* WOO-HOO!!!! That means complete and utter freedom from my nitpicking parents and stupid sister.

Oh yeah, by the way, my friends and I have decided to go on a senior trip before we begin college. We haven't decided where to go yet. Any suggestions?

*        *        *

TO: stives@aol.com

FROM: shiawase@yahoo.com

SUBJECT: My Suggestion

Omedetou on your graduation! I am sure you deserve it. You're very lucky; you no longer have to slave over all these problems that we high school students have to endure. If it weren't for my basketball playing, I would have gone crazy a long time ago.

Anyway, about your question…why don't you come here to Kanagawa? It is a quiet place, but close enough to Tokyo and Kyoto if one takes the train. I'd be more than happy to take you around myself on weekends, if you'd like. And if you need a place to stay, you can stay at my house. We have more than enough room for you and your friends.

Oh, this is all the time I have left. So, tell me if you will accept my suggestion in your next letter, okay? Ja ne!

*        *        *

TO: shiawase@yahoo.com

FROM: stives@aol.com

SUBJECT: Why Not??!!

Hey, that sounds cool!!! Why didn't I think of that? I've discussed your suggestion with my friends, and they all want to go to Kanagawa. We've never been to Japan before, so it'll be a thrill to go there. And don't worry about letting us stay at your place; we plan to rent a small flat within Kanagawa, and we'll just drop by when we're ready.

Whoops, gotta go now!! I still haven't finished the booking with the airlines yet. So, I'll just see you when I see you!! Ciao!


	2. Chapter One: New York Girls

Chapter One: New York Girls 

Friday again in Kanagawa, and that means practice time for the team of Shohoku High. After classes, they gathered in the gym, preparing themselves for another day of aching bones and strained muscles.

Kogure sighed as he watched the others start playing. He knew he would get his chance later, but he wished he could have played earlier. _It will take my mind off waiting, at the very least._

He had recently received an email from his overseas pal Erin, who lived in New York. He had "met" her, so to speak, in an online chat-room, and after an exchange of email addresses, had grown to be good friends. Her most recent letters were about wanting to go to Japan on a senior trip with her friends, and had told him that they would be staying in Kanagawa.

However, she had said, in her very last letter, that she would be arriving TODAY. _I wonder if she'll be standing around the airport, waiting for me to show up, and then I won't be able to make it…_ Kogure grimaced. _Kuso!_

"Hey, anyone in here? Can we come in?"

The voice was feminine, with a distinctly American accent. The moment the sound reached Kogure's ears, a large grin spread on his face, and turned around.

There were six girls standing near the door, dressed in casual clothes. Kogure didn't recognize all of them, but he DID know one of them. He stood up, and walked over. "We meet at last, Erin-san!"

*        *        *

Erin looked up, and smiled when she saw a tall boy with brown hair and brown eyes behind glasses coming towards her. "Kogure, right?"

The boy's smile widened. "Hai. And you're Erin?"

"In the flesh," Erin replied as she extended her hand for him to shake.

Kogure shook her hand, smiling all the while. "It's such a pleasure to finally meet you in person. I never thought it'd be possible for this to happen."

Erin laughed, and shrugged. "Well, I have my ways." She turned to her friends. "By the way, these are the friends I was telling you about: Ciel, Aleine, Jesse, Crisel or CJ, and Melina. Guys, this is my e-pal, Kogure."

CJ looked at Kogure from head to toe, brown eyes glimmering. After a while, she turned back to Erin, and grinned. "Erin, you never told us he was cute."

"CJ! Have you no shame?!" Jesse demanded in a half-serious manner.

"Oh, I have shame, but why should I be ashamed if I'm telling the truth?" CJ answered.

Erin simply rolled her eyes. _Here they go again._ She turned to a now-blushing Kogure. "Sorry about that. CJ's the kind of person who always speaks her mind; gets her in trouble a lot too."

Kogure shifted uncomfortably, then said, "Uh, I see. Anyway, I-"

"Oi, Megane-kun! What are you doing with all those girls?! Since when did you have a fan club, huh?!"

*        *        *

Kogure winced as Hanamichi came walking up to him. _Oh gods, why NOW?!?!_ He turned around to face Hanamichi. "Oh, Hanamichi! Wha-what are you doing here?"

A stupid expression presented itself on the redhead's face. "I was just wondering about these girls. Why haven't you fan club come out into the open until now? Afraid they couldn't compete with the Rukawa Brigade?"

One of the girls, whom Erin had introduced as Aleine, eyed Hanamichi coldly, her blue eyes looking him up and down as she flipped her silver hair over her shoulder. "Excuse me, but you can't call us 'fan girls' yet. We just met Kogure today."

Hanamichi seemed taken aback by those words, which were spoken in Japanese laced with a clearly American twang. He twitched, and pointed a finger at the girl. "You're not from around here, are you?"

Kogure noticed Erin roll her eyes. "Well, duh. Did you figure THAT out just now?"

The girl named Melina shook her head, brown eyes sarcastic while her red-brown hair shimmered. "God, you're a little slow on the uptake, aren't you?"

Hanamichi was still twitching with surprise. "Then, where are you from?"

Ciel looked at him eye-to-eye, her deep amethyst eyes a contrast to her raven tresses. "The United States; New York City, to be precise."

*        *        *

Jesse nearly fell over laughing as she watched the shocked expression on the face of Kogure's redheaded companion grow into one that seemed to border on pure horror. _Are New Yorkers really THAT bad?_

Thinking that it would be good to put the poor boy at ease, she grinned as she walked past him. "Don't worry, we won't bite." She wandered over to the middle of the court, and picked up the ball that had been left lying around. She balanced it in her hand. "In fact, why don't you let us prove it to you in a game?"

"What makes you think you can just barge in here and challenge us to a game?"

Jesse turned to the source of the sound, and noticed another boy staring at her. He had short, wild black hair; icy blue eyes; and pale skin. "What's your name?"

The boy glared at her for a moment before replying. "Rukawa Kaede."

"Rukawa…Kaede," Jesse said slowly, trying to remember the name. In the end, she simply shrugged, and dribbled the ball. "If you don't want to play against us now, fine, I'd understand. You probably need some time to prepare. But either way, the challenge still stands."

Jesse noticed Kaede's eyes narrow slightly. _Hmmm, so you don't like backing down once challenged? This is quite interesting._ She turned to her friends. "You guys ready to play?"

She watched with growing satisfaction as her friends all began to grin. One by one, they started to make their preparations: trying their hair, or hiking their sleeves up to keep them out of the way.

Jesse was mildly surprised when Erin didn't step forward to play. "Erin?"

"Sorry, but I won't be playing," Erin replied. She lifted the hem of her elephant pants, revealing a pair of platform shoes. "And besides, I can't play in THESE, can I?"

Melina grinned teasingly. "Wanna try it out now? After all, wearing platforms will give you a definite height advantage."

Erin rolled her eyes. "You and your wisecracking are starting to get on my nerves, y'know?"

"Oh, I know, and that's why I love you," Melina replied.

Jesse just shook her head. _They're both my friends, and extremely talented players to boot, but this is one of those times when I really feel like conking them out with a club or something._ "Okay, quit it you two. We've got a game to win."

Aleine walked towards her, tying back her brilliant silver hair in a braid. "So what's our strategy, Cap'n?"

"Oh, the usual. We're playing these guys for the first time, so we don't know how to handle them yet. We'll just have to go with the usual 'Play Dead' tactic."

"In any case, do you want us to mark anyone in particular?" Ciel asked, her hair now hanging in a ponytail at the back of her head.

Jesse glanced at the group of boys they were going to play against. She had no qualms about facing them; after all, she HAD playing against a bunch of seven-footers before in New York. And their tallest was, what, six-four, six-five at the most? _No problem._

She turned back to her teammates. "Okay, here are your assignments. Melina, you can take care of number 7, and CJ, you handle number 10. Ciel, number 4 is yours, and Aleine, you can take number 14. I'll handle number 11."

CJ glanced at Ciel, then at the guy in the number 4 jersey. "Uh, Jess, you sure that Ciel should mark him? I mean, he's tall-"

"Which makes Ciel perfect for defending against him," Jesse cut in. "And besides, Ciel can do fantastic rebounds in spite of the fact that she's loads shorter than number 4. She can jump him any day. Right, Ciel?"

Ciel smiled slightly. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Jesse."

Jesse nodded in acknowledgement, then grinned. "Let's go knock 'em dead, girls!"

*        *        *

Rukawa eyed the girls observantly, trying to read their every move. Though none of them were nearly as tall as he was, he got a funny feeling in his gut that told him height wouldn't intimidate them at all.

_Especially not HER,_ he added to himself, fixing his glare on the girl who had challenged them a while ago. She had short black hair up to her shoulders, and deep brown eyes to match. She was wearing a tank top and a pair of shorts, showing off her athletic build. Their little group had gathered together, apparently discussing strategy, but after a moment, they broke up, and walked up to them.

The girl he had been observing smiled. "Who's the captain of this team?"

Akagi walked up to her. "What is it?"

"First of all, introductions. My name's Jesse, and I am the captain. The one with auburn hair is Melina; the chocolate-haired one is CJ; the girl with black hair is Ciel; and the one with silver hair is Aleine. Our friend who's with Kogure right now is Erin.

"Anyway, let's make a deal about scoring and time. First half will only be twenty minutes as opposed to the usual thirty, but the second half will be thirty minutes long. And as for scoring, it goes like this: first to make a hundred points automatically wins the game, whether the time is used up or not. If in the event that time runs out before either team has made it to a hundred, then the team with the highest score wins. Is this alright with you?"

Akagi stared down at her, his eyes and demeanor stern, as usual. "Alright, I agree to your terms."

"But what will we get in return?" Mitsui butted in.

Rukawa gave a sideways glance. "Do'aho."

The girl named Aleine smiled coldly back at Mitsui. "If you beat us, you get to remain some vestige of dignity. If you lose…well then, shame on you for losing to girls."

"Aleine…" Jesse began warningly, but it was too late. Most of the guys had already taken that blatant insult to heart, and were very ready to prove them wrong.

But something troubled Rukawa's mind. It hadn't escaped him that these girls were, how should he say, well endowed. _Kuso! How are we going to play offense if they've got- And these are GIRLS, for crying out loud! They aren't supposed to play against boys! One wrong shift of the hand and they could be screaming "hentai" up and down the campus…_

"Alright team, this is the plan," Akagi began. "As you can see, these girls mean business, and are very serious about winning. Just because they are girls doesn't mean you can relax. I want you to play as though the championship depended on it."

"But how do you expect us to play offense and defense against them?!" Sakuragi demanded. "If we push too hard or move the wrong way or something, we might get slapped and labeled perverts!"

A strange smile twisted on Akai's face. "And that's the challenge, isn't it? You have to try and play without getting too close. Once you learn that, then in a real game, the chances of us getting fouled will be reduced."

"Hey, are you guys ready?"

Rukawa  turned to the girls. They had gathered in the middle of the court. Kogure was among them, holding the ball in his right hand. Apparently, he would be the referee of the game.

Akagi glanced at Rukawa, and the latter nodded. The entire Shohoku basketball team strode over to the New York girls, preparing themselves for the game that was to come.

*        *        *

Melina panted as she collapsed on the bench. _Whoa, some game we had!_ She leaned against the wall, and slowly breathed in and out, trying to recuperate.

CJ sat down beside her. "They're leading us by the nose, they are."

Melina nodded, and glanced at the scoreboard. The score was 91-80; an eleven point lead. _Hmm, we might have a chance._ "Jess, what are we going to do?"

Jesse was quiet for a long time, watching their opponents gloat over their imminent victory. After a while, she said, "They're tough, tougher than anyone we've every played against. But they're good for practice." She turned to them. "Change of plans. We go into full offensive mode this next half. We've got to play catch-up. Have you memorized how your marks play yet? Do you have your strategy?"

Melina nodded in response, glancing at the boy in jersey number 7. He was an inch shorter than she was, with an earring in his left ear and curly hair. He was a very fast runner, and great at stealing too. If it weren't for his height, he would've made a formidable defensive player.

But Melina knew his weakness. _He usually goes for the quick hit-and-run kind of steal. I have to either pass the ball, run REALLY fast, or let him steal the ball, then I'll steal it back._

Halftime finally over, Melina stood up, and stretched her arms and legs. She sauntered to the middle of the court, and kicked her leg up to her head, by way of limbering up her bones in preparation for the upcoming game. This feat was easy to accomplish, considering the fact that she was an amateur gymnast and ballet dancer in her spare time. She noticed number 7 looking at her, an inquiring glint in his gaze. She simply smiled, and shrugged her shoulders as she slowly pulled her left leg up so that her foot touched her forehead. _Sorry bub, New Yorkers don't go down until the last minute._

Soon, the others joined her on the court, most of them looking relaxed and confident, expect for Jesse. Melina gazed worriedly at their captain. _She looks so harassed._

Jesse's face was stiff and serious, quite unlike her usual cheerful demeanor. There was a hint of something that bordered on murder in her eyes, and it gave Melina the chills.

However, she quickly realized that Jesse reserved this particular look of hers for the boy in jersey number 11. And she knew why.

_He's too good a player,_ Melina though as number 11 approached them, his face as impassive as an ice sculpture. Though Melina hadn't yet had the chance to play against him, she had watched him play out of the corner of her eye, and she immediately recognized his talent.

But Jesse was an equally good player; in fact, she was the best on their team. She could play any position in the game, but because of her high jumping and defense skills, she often played as the center.

_But she's never played against a guy like HIM before,_ Melina thought to herself. She put aside all thoughts like that for the meantime, and returned her focus to the player she was supposed to mark.

The guy grinned slightly at her, and winked.

Melina felt her lips freeze into a straight line. _So he's flirting, eh?_ She shook her head slightly, so that not even number 7 could see it. _Poor guy. I wonder what he'd do if he found out that my other nickname is "Black Widow"?_

*        *        *

Aleine raced after the boy in jersey number 14, trying to keep an eye on him. She had recognized early on in the game that he was the three-point shooter for the opposing team, and it was her job to keep him as far away from anyone holding the ball so that they won't pass it to him, and if he had gotten hold of the ball, to force him as close as possible towards Jesse, CJ, or Ciel for defense, or let Melina come and steal the ball.

_Of course, I'd much rather SHOOT the ball myself than guard someone holding it,_ Aleine thought morosely as she blocked number 14 from the ball's path, catching it herself. She whirled around towards their goal, intending to shoot a three-pointer. After all, she was skilled at long-distance shooting, but was a failure at free throws and lay-ups. She just didn't have the touch for it, unlike Ciel and Erin. She paused at the three-point area, and threw the ball. It went up in a smooth arc, and passed through the hoop with a satisfying swish.

In the background, her teammates cheered. When Aleine glanced at the scoreboard, she understood why they seemed so happy. The score was 91-98, with their team in the lead.

At that moment, Kogure blew the whistle. Apparently, the captain of Shohoku had called for a timeout. Aleine smirked. _Getting jittery, are we?_ And to think that only moments before, all of them were wearing these smirks on their faces that seemed to say they would win.

Jesse approached her, and grinned. "That was a great shot, Aleine. Do you think you can make one more?"

"Of course," Aleine replied. "Just make sure that number 11 and number 10 don't get the ball. I'll handle the rest from there."

Jesse gazed at her for a long moment, then nodded. "Okay, I'll tell the others."

*        *        *

Mitsui narrowed his eyes a little as he gazed at the girl with silver hair and sapphire eyes. _Kuso!_

This was his first time to play a serious game against girls, and he had to admit, he had never expected that they would eventually gain the lead.

_They were tailing us by eleven points during the first half! How could they have recovered so quickly?_

During the first half, the girls had been pushovers. Though they apparently had extraordinary skills and talents, they didn't seem to be playing them out too much. They DID score, of course, and Shohoku's lead never got any bigger than eleven, but it was STILL a lead.

And then during the second half, the girls' team suddenly got on a winning streak. They managed to constantly steal the ball and make three-point shots. They rarely went up close and personal, since they probably knew that Akagi would block their shots. The only time they ever went near the basket was when they saw the opportunity for a lay-up.

_And the worst thing about this arrangement, _Mitsui thought as he ran after the girl he had nicknamed "Silver Hair", _is that she is faster and can shoot farther than I can._

Mitsui had always taken pride in the fact that he was one of the best three-point shooters in Kanagawa, but it seemed that this little slip of an onna was challenging him for that title. _There's no way in HELL I'd let her beat me!_

They were running side-by-side now, she waiting for the ball to be thrown at her, and he waiting for a chance to block. He glanced at her, and noticed a strange hint of cunning in her eyes. _Huh? Is something going to happen?_

Suddenly, someone from the front shouted, "Yo J!"

Before anyone of the Shohoku team could even react, the ball had been passed in a zigzag manner to Silver Hair. The moment the ball came into her hands, she halted, and shot. The ball sailed through the air, and bounced off the edge of the ring.

Mitsui grinned broadly as the ball fell into Riyota's hands. _We might have a chance after all!_

*        *        *

Miyagi grinned as he passed the ball to Mitsui, and followed the others towards the opposite court. _Time to play offense!_

The ball was passed down the line, from Mitsui to Sakuragi, and from Sakuragi to Akagi. So far, the only ones guarding the basket were that girl with the purple eyes, and the captain of the bunch, the one who called herself Jesse.

Miyagi stared at Akagi, who was busy dribbling the ball. Rukawa was already beneath the basket, in a perfect place to shoot. _Come on Akagi! Pass it to Rukawa!_

As if he had read his mind, Akagi quickly threw the ball to Rukawa, who caught it, and jumped in an attempt to shoot.

However, just a split-second later, the ball bounced onto the floor, right into the hands of the silver-haired girl.

_Nani?!_ When Riyota looked, he noticed Rukawa glaring at the Jesse girl, who simply ignored him, and ran to the opposite court.

Riyota gasped. _I don't believe it! Did she actually BLOCK Rukawa's shot?!_

But it was too late for any more thoughts. The ball was in the other team's possession, and if they made another shot, they'd win.

He quickly spun around, and chased after the silver-haired girl. He noticed that Mitsui was already on her tail, and slowly gaining.

Soon, Mitsui was standing in front of Silver Hair, blocking her path. But there was only a smirk on her face as she looked back at him, She bent her knees, and jumped. As she threw the ball, she backed away slightly in the classic fade-away.

Riyota's jaw dropped. _A fade-away?! She knows how to do a FADE-AWAY?!?!_

The whistle blew, and cheering ensued, coming from the girls' team. Riyota looked at the scoreboard, and his heart sank slightly.

The scoreboard read 91-100. For the first time in a while, Shohoku lost. And the worst part of it was, they lost to girls.


	3. Chapter Two: We Won...NYAH, NYAH!!!

Chapter Two: We Won…NYAH, NYAH!!!! 

Ciel let out a laugh of relief as she pushed loose strands of hair out of her eyes. _At last, it's over!_

The game had been a hard one, but it was fun nonetheless. It had been a challenge guarding the very tall player in jersey number 4, but it was a challenge she was used to.

She looked up at number 4's face, and smiled. "That was a hard game to play, but I had fun. If it won't be too much trouble, may I know your name?"

The guy stared down at her for a long time, but eventually, his lips formed the semblance of a smile. "Akagi Takenori. And you?"

"Ciel Duvalier."

"That was a good game, but just like Mel said, you're too slow in the head," CJ told the redhead in jersey number 10.

Just like Ciel expected, that comment didn't sit well with the redhead. In fact, the guy seemed to be literally smoking at the ears. "NANI?!?!?!"

At once, Kogure came running over, trying his best to calm Redhead down. "Ma, ma Sakuragi-kun! You don't want to lose your head around a girl, do you?"

Ciel glanced at Akagi, and noticed that a vein was starting to throb in the latter's forehead. After a while, he strode over to Redhead, apparently named Sakuragi, and hit him hard on the head. Ciel sweat dropped when an egg-shaped lump formed on top of his head.

CJ laughed at the sight, making Ciel look at her. She was standing a little ways off, the basketball balanced on her hip. "So the saying IS true! Men are ruled not by what's between their ears, but by what's between their legs!"

Ciel winced. _CJ may be very witty, but she can be a little crass and inappropriate sometimes._ She approached CJ, and said, "CJ, I don't think that was a good thing to say…"

CJ blinked. "You think so?"

Ciel sighed, and shook her head. _She's completely clueless AGAIN!_ She knew that CJ wanted to be an ambassador, but how could she be one if she wasn't tactful?_ She might cause an international scandal if she keeps this up…_

In the meantime, Jesse walked over to Sakuragi, and grinned ruefully. "Sorry 'bout that. CJ has a tendency to run off at the mouth." She paused, then held her hand out. "But it was a fun game. Hope you won't be TOO depressed about losing."

Sakuragi eyed her with a glare, but after a while, he snorted. "Hmph, you were just lucky today. We couldn't play at our best because you were girls."

"That's stupid," Melina said. "We've played against other guys before, and they're lots better than you. They never treated us like glass statues that could break at the slightest contact."

Erin nodded. "Yeah, that's right. We played basketball in the slums and ghettos of New York, and believe me, guys there RARELY play fair. In fact, we were almost expecting that you wouldn't treat us so nicely."

"Well, we're just not used to playing against girls. This is the first time we've ever done such a thing," Miyagi explained.

Melina was surprised. "Really?"

Ciel was only mildly surprised. _After all, things are very different here._ The beep of her cell phone startled her out of her thoughts. She checked it, and realized that she had one missed call, and that an email from her parents was waiting for her. She turned to the others, and smiled. "Look, I'm sorry for just leaving you guys like this, but I really gotta go. I've got something important to do."

*        *        *

Erin watched as Ciel exited the gym, leaving just five of them with the guys. Not that she was worried about anything, of course. They could put six guys in their places just fine on their own.

"But I still think Melina's right," Aleine said. "We have played basketball against guys who didn't care one whit if we twisted our ankles. Being so concerned about us only signifies weakness." She glanced at the boy in jersey number 14, and smirked. "Don't you think so……do'aho?"

Number 14 suddenly yelled, "My name is NOT do'aho!!"

"Oh? Isn't that what the other guy called you?"

"My name's Mitsui Hisashi. And don't you use the word 'do'aho' EVER again! Do you even know that it means?!"

"No. Why don't you tell me?"

"It means 'asshole'."

"Asshole? Well, I think that word suits you perfectly – do'aho."

"NANI?!?!?!"

Aleine smirked, apparently oblivious to the fact that Mitsui looked very ready to cause trouble. "What, you don't like do'aho? I can always just call you asshole, if you'd prefer."

Now Erin knew Aleine had gone too far. She ran over to her friend just as Kogure and Miyagi went over to Mitsui. "Hey Aleine, I think you've gone just a little TOO far."

Aleine glanced at her, her gaze inquiring. "Am I, Erin?"

Erin gave her a half-smile. "Take a look at the poor guy and you'll see what I mean."

Aleine glanced at Mitsui, and blinked when she saw the expression on his face. She shrugged, and turned away. "Whatever."

Erin sweat-dropped. "Err, yeah, right." She glanced at the others, who all just looked back at her with expressions that seemed to say that they had seen it all before.

Melina checked her wristwatch, and hopped down from the bench she had been sitting on. "Hey girls, it's nearly twelve. Let's go back."

Erin sighed. "Yeah, got it." She turned to Kogure, and grinned. "Thanks for letting us play with you guys. To return the gesture, why don't you come by our house sometime?"

Kogure shuffled his feet a little, but replied, "Sure, we'll come by when we have the time."

"Great!" Erin pulled out a notepad, and scribbled down the address of the flat, along with the phone number. "Here, this is the address and the phone number. Give us a ring before you come, so we can at least prepare a little."

Kogure looked at the paper, and grinned. "Arigatou, Erin-san."

Erin shrugged. "No prob." She started walking out of the gym, her hand fumbling in her pocket. At long last, her fingers touched a cold piece of metal, and she smiled.

With a confident stride in her step, she walked over to the parking lot, and sourced out a black Porsche. Not that it was too difficult to find. It's easy to spot a sexy black Porsche amid bicycles and Toyotas.

Just as she had unlocked the door of her car, she felt someone staring at her. When she turned, she found the entire basketball club staring at her and her friends, mouths handing wide open in amazement. "Did you want something?"

Rukawa pointed at the Porsche. "Is that your car?"

Erin nodded. "Yeah."

"Do you have a license?"

"Yeah." Erin pulled out her wallet, and showed them a small plastic card. "International Driver's License. In New York, the driving age limit was recently dropped to 16, so we all got our licenses before we went here. After that, we applied for an International Driving Permit. This little baby legally allows us to drive anywhere in the civilized world, regardless of that country's driving age limit." She raised her eyebrow. "Got a problem with that?"

Rukawa didn't say anything further, and lowered his hand.

Erin grinned, and got into the car, sliding into the leather seat as she started the engine. Jesse joined her in the passenger's seat of her car.

Aleine had been the first to pull out, her Ferrari gleaming a bright fire engine red in the spring sunlight. She paused in front of Mitsui, and waved at him. "Ciao, do'aho!" Before Mitsui could even react, she had already driven off with the sound of screeching tires and a little dust cloud.

Beside Erin, Jesse chuckled. "Same old Aleine, never lets go of anything until the very last minute."  
  


Erin shifted gears, and pulled out of the parking lot. "Yeah, but I wish she'd be a little more tactful about it."

"Whatever. She knows how to get herself out of trouble anyway," Jesse said with a shrug as they drove off.


	4. Chapter Three: Chance Meetings

Chapter Three: Chance Meetings 

Melina swung the grocery bags into the trunk of her BMW, and closed the trunk with a thud. After doing so, she joined CJ in front, starting up the engine and pulling out of the parking lot.

As they drove down the road, CJ suddenly spoke up. "What d'you think of the guys?"

Melina raised an eyebrow. "In what way?"

"You know what I'm talking about," CJ said with a grin. "Are they boyfriend material or what?"

Melina suddenly tightened her grip on the steering wheel, but didn't let CJ notice it. She shrugged. "I dunno."

CJ stared at her, and turned away. "Oh yeah, I forgot. I'm talking to the infamous 'Black Widow'. How many guys have you dumped already? 50?"

"58."

That answer earned Melina some peace and quiet. _To be honest, I sometimes wish that I didn't have to be known as the Black Widow. It's not like I DID anything to EARN that so-called title…_ She frowned. _If only THAT didn't happen…_

Suddenly, CJ tapped her shoulder, and pointed to the sidewalk. "Hey look, a coffee shop. Let's stop by for a while and get a couple of fraps."

That brought Melina's spirits up. She slowed the car, and parked in front of the café. She grinned at CJ. "C'mon, it'll be my treat."

*        *        *

DING DING!!!

Koshino looked up from his soda when he heard the door of the café open, and watched as two girls walked in. "Eh?"

Sendoh blinked at him. "What's up?"

Koshino didn't have to say anything when the girls walked up to the table beside them. One of them, rather tall with short reddish-brown hair and dark brown eyes, approached Sendoh, and pointed to the empty table beside them. "Excuse me, is this table taken?"

Sendoh smiled at the girl, and shook his head. "No, it's free."

"Thanks." The girl smiled at him in gratitude, and then sat down at the table with her companion, who had long brown hair and hazel eyes.

Koshino watched the girls with interest. It hadn't escaped his ears that they spoke with American accents. _Are they tourists?_ He glanced at Sendoh, and noticed that his best friend was just as curious about them as he was. By mutual agreement, they decided to listen in.

The one with long hair grinned at her companion while she ordered. "That redhead – Sakuragi, right? – I'd really like to strangle him someday."

The other one raised an eyebrow. "Why do you say that?"

"He belittled us. He thought we couldn't beat him. Him and that Rukawa guy."

"What do you expect? It goes like this: ¼ of the guys in this world are gays, another ¼ are married or have girlfriends, and the rest are jerks. And I think they both fall in the latter category."

"And what about that Mitsui person?"

"DEFINITELY a jerk."

"Kogure?"

A pause. "Can't say, but maybe he's gay."

Long Hair spluttered into her frap. "WHAT?!?!?! You serious, Mel?"

Silence.

Long Hair sighed, and shook her head. "Sometimes Mel, I think you're more mysterious than Ciel or Aleine, in spite of that big smile you usually project."

Short Hair's lips twisted into a half-smile, and she sipped her frap without another word.

Now taking his cue from their silence, Koshino turned to them, and asked, "Excuse me, but are you from Shohoku?"

Long Hair turned to him, and blinked. "By 'from', you mean do we STUDY there, or did we GO there and then leave?"

"Do you study there?"

Long Hair giggled. "Hell no! We just got back after having a game with them."

_Nani?!?!?!_ Koshino glanced at Sendoh, and noticed a strange expression cross the taller boy's face.

Sendoh turned to Short Hair, and grinned. "Gomen, but I didn't get your names…"

Short Hair laughed. "Oh yeah, we haven't introduced ourselves." She held out her hand. "I'm Melina Anderson, but everyone just calls me Melina or Mel."

"And I'm Sendoh Akira. A pleasure to meet you, Melina-san," Sendoh replied as he shook hands with Melina.

In the meantime, Koshino turned to Long Hair. "I'm Koshino Hiroaki. And you are…?"

"Crisel Joy Carter. Just call me CJ," she said with a grin as they shook hands.

Koshino smiled back at her, and it took all of his willpower to avoid staring into her eyes for too long…

"So," Melina's voice cut through his thoughts. "Where are you guys from? Are you from Shohoku too?"

Sendoh laughed. "Nope, sorry. We're from another school, Ryonan High. Have you heard of it?"

Melina shook her head. "Not yet."

CJ eyed Sendoh for a moment, then fixed her gaze on Koshino. After a moment of silent analysis, she said, "You're basketball players, ain't ya?"

_Huh? How did she figure that out?_ "Uh, yeah, that's right. Why, something wrong?" Koshino asked.

CJ and Melina were looking at one another, and there was a gleam of conspiracy in their eyes. After a while, CJ turned to Koshino. "Oh, it was nothing. Mel and I just had an idea. Anyway, we really hate to cut this so short, but we really gotta go."

Koshino and Sendoh moved back, allowing the two girls to step out and head for the door. Just as they were about to exit, Sendoh asked, "Will we see you again?"

Melina turned around to face him, a playful smile smack dab on her face. "Oh, we will Sendoh. Sooner than you think." With a laugh, she exited the café, leaving Koshino and Sendoh to puzzle over her words.

*        *        *

Ciel listened to the whistling of the wind as it whipped past her ears and blew her hair back from her face. She had just accomplished a certain errand, and she was now on her way home.

_Home…_ Ciel's eyes narrowed slightly as she rounded a curve. _Being here in Japan with my friends feels more like home than Park Avenue ever did._

Ciel had become so absorbed with her own thoughts that she didn't notice a basketball bound across the road from the court on her right. And neither did she notice that a guy was chasing it until the last minute.

_Yikes!_ Ciel slammed on the brakes, and with a loud screech, her car stopped no less than two feet away from her almost-victim. "Hey, watch it! I could've hit you!"

The boy looked up, and eyed her angrily. He had short light brown hair and blue eyes. He picked up the ball, and then strode over to the driver's side of the car. "Look who's talking?! I'M the one who nearly got run over, and YOU'RE the one with the nerve to get angry! And… I don't believe it! You're a GIRL?!?!?"

Ciel raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong with that? Last time I checked, Japan was a free country."

The boy blushed slightly, but not much. Apparently he didn't want to sound sexist. Ciel exhaled slowly, trying to let her anger simmer down somewhat. _Now's not the time to lose my head…_

At that moment, there was the roar of an engine from behind, and a bright red car with a flash of silver careened down the road, going well above the speed limit. Ciel winced as it whizzed by, closing her eyes to prevent any dust from getting flung into them. When she opened her eyes, she noticed the boy pressed against the door over her car, looking stricken and relieved at the same time. "That was too close."

"Tell me about it," Ciel muttered. Suddenly, she grinned. "Well, now you can't accuse me of having tried to kill you, seeing that there are worse drivers than me."

The boy scowled somewhat, but it wasn't as bad as before. "That STILL doesn't discount the fact that you nearly ran me over."

Ciel shrugged. "At least I used my brakes. And besides, no one runs out onto a busy street unless they're on a suicide mission. It was your fault too, in a way; you shouldn't have chased after your ball like that."

The boy stared at her for a moment, then quite suddenly, he laughed. Ciel blinked in surprise. _Huh? Is he some kind of psycho or something?_

After a moment, the boy bent down over her, and extended his hand. "Gomen nasai about that. My name's Fujima, Fujima Kenji."

Ciel stared at him, but slowly smiled, and shook his hand. "Fujima…Kenji." She paused a moment, then asked, "What school are you from?"

"Shoyo. By the way, I-"

Suddenly, a voice called from the court. "Oi Fujima, come back so we can play again!"

Hai, hai, Hanagata!" Fujima replied. He glanced at Ciel, who then said, "Looks like you're needed. I'd best be going now." She started to pull away, but then, Fujima said, "Matte!"

Ciel turned back to him, and grinned. "We may meet again, Fujima Kenji. If Fate should be kind to us, we will meet. Ja ne!" With that, she drove off, and didn't look back.

*        *        *

Fujima stared, openmouthed, as the girl he had been talking to roared away in her Lamborghini. _Kuso! I wasn't able to ask her name!_

Hanagata came walking up to him at that moment, his eyes holding the glint of curiosity. "Who was that?"

Fujima blinked back to reality, and turned to his friend. "Nani?"

"Who was that," Hanagata repeated.

"Oh!" Fujima grinned, and shook his head. "I don't know. I didn't get to ask her name."

Hanagata shook his head, smirking slightly. "And you meet another roadblock in your quest to find a girlfriend. Fujima, when you meet a girl, you ALWAYS ask for her name first – even if she nearly kills you."

"Hai, hai," Fujima grumbled as he and Hanagata walked back to their other teammates.

"You know, she was kinda pretty," Hanagata said thoughtfully. "Long black hair, pale skin… Did you see the color of her eyes?"

Fujima nodded. "Royal purple." He smiled slightly. "Purple like the twilight."

Hanagata glanced at Fujima. "Since when did you become a poet?"

"Since I met her."

Hanagata laughed heartily. "Whoa, looks like Fujima Kenji's in LOVE!"

But Fujima wasn't listening. He gazed at the setting sun, a smile on his lips. _If Fate is kind to us? Then I pray for Fate to be kind, so that I would see you again…even if this time, you REALLY run me over!_


	5. Chapter Four: House Calls

Chapter Four: House Calls 

"Are you SURE this is the right place?" Hanamichi grumbled as the members of Team Shohoku stepped off the bullet train and onto the platform.

Kogure checked the paper he had in his hand, and nodded. "Yup, this is it. Get off at the fourth station, and then take a cab from the station to the flat. The directions are specified here."

Ayako grinned brightly, and she walked ahead of them. "Come on, let's get going! We don't want to keep them waiting, do we?"

*        *        *

Melina sighed as she rode down the path, the hooves of her horse, Firebane, clattering against the stones and pebbles that littered the road. _What a beautiful day!_

It was a warm Saturday morning, the perfect weather for riding. She had spent the entire morning riding through the estate, roaming around as free as the wind.

The moment she reached the end of the path, she dismounted, intending to walk the rest of the way back.

As she neared the road towards the flat, she heard voices coming from the front. _Huh?_

"Oi Megane-kun, you REALLY got us lost thing time!"

"Stop making so much noise, Hanamichi-kun! If you hadn't been so noisy and if you had stopped arguing with Rukawa, then maybe we would STILL be in the cab and wouldn't be walking around in the middle of nowhere!"

"Yeah, Aya-chan's right!"

Melina giggled to herself, and she tugged the reins of her horse. _Time to give them a surprise._

*        *        *

"Hey you guys! What are you doing all the way out here?"

Kogure looked up the moment she heard the voice, and his jaw dropped. "Me-Melina san?!" _What is she doing here?!_

Melina smiled at him as she approached. "Hi everyone!" As she walked out from the cover of the trees, a rowan red horse followed her from behind.

Kogure gaped at her and the horse. "Um, if you don't mind my asking, what are you doing out here with a horse?"

Melina laughed. "Don't seem so surprised! I always go out riding if the weather permits. And besides, all of this land and the horses belong to us anyway, so even if I felt like riding out in the middle of a storm, no one would really mind."

For a moment, all time froze. The silence was broken when Kogure managed to stammer, "You…you OWN this land we're standing on?"

"Yeah," Melina replied. "She looked at Kogure with an odd expression, then asked, "You mean Erin never told you?"

Kogure shook his head. "She never told me."

"Oh." Melina gazed at them, then she grinned. "In any case, it looks like I'll have to tell you everything on the way back." She walked ahead of them. "C'mon. We can get back to the flat if we walk this way."

Kogure fell in step beside her. For a while, they walked in silence, and he took this time to digest the startling discovery he had made. _Why didn't Erin-san tell me?!_

At length, Melina spoke. "Our families – the McAlistairs, McNallys, Carters, Andersons, Drakensburgs, and Duvaliers – are quite…prominent in New York. The McAlistairs own much of the land on which New York City stands, while the Drakensburgs and Duvaliers are members of the diplomatic corps. The Carters are connected to an old presidential family, and the McNallys are among the biggest corporate stockholders. And as for us Andersons, we own a large pharmaceutical company that deals in painkillers and anesthetics."

For the third time that day, Kogure's mind became numb from an overload of information. Now that he thought about it, the names Melina had mentioned WERE very affluent. _No wonder they go around in sports cars and live on prime real estate._

Melina halted at that moment, and Kogure did the same thing. They were now standing in front of a huge mansion, with wide clerestory windows draped with red curtains, and fronted by a cobblestone driveway with a fountain in the middle.

Naturally, they were startled at seeing such a massive house.

"This is probably the biggest house in Kanagawa," Miyagi whispered to Kogure, who nodded. _No doubt about it._

At that moment, Melina turned to them, and smiled. "Sorry to leave you guys like this, but I have to bring Firebane back to the stables. I think you can find your way from here. Ja!" She slipped her foot into the stirrup, and gracefully got onto the horse. She kicked her heels into the animal's flanks, and galloped off towards the back of the house.

Kogure watched her disappear around the bend, and sighed when she was out of sight. _This has been a day full of surprises._ He walked to the front door, and rang the bell.

*        *        *

Erin looked up the moment she heard the doorbell ring. _Huh?_ She turned from the computer screen, and glanced at Ciel, who was sitting at her desk, looking over some documents. "Who do you think that could be?"

"Must be the visitors," Ciel replied without even looking up from her papers.

"Oh yeah, right." Erin cut her connection to the online trade room of Wall Street, and stood up. She walked out the library, past CJ's study, and down the stairs. She moved towards the front doors, and opened them to be greeted by Kogure's face. She smiled. "Hey Kogure! So glad you guys could make it!"

Kogure grinned back at her. "Ohayo, Erin-san. I hope we aren't too late…"

"Oh no, you're early, actually. We thought you guys wouldn't come in until this afternoon. Don't you have practice?" Erin asked as she led them to the living room.

Kogure sounded apologetic. "Gomen nasai, but Akagi thought that we'd forego practice for today to come and visit."

Erin glanced at Akagi, and he just gazed solemnly back at her. _Oh._ She smiled. "No prob. You can play later, if you want. We've got an outdoor court at the back of the house, but its kinda off-limits right now cause Jesse's busy fixing her Harley."

Mitsui blinked at her. "A Harley?"

"Yeah. Jesse used to run around with a biker gang before we met, but she's given up that sort of life. She still keeps her Harley though, and she'd rather ride it than a car." Erin glanced around, and noticed an unfamiliar girl sitting between Akagi and Ayako. She smiled at the girl. "Hi! I don't think we've met before. What's your name?"

The girl blushed, but smiled. "Ohayo. My name is Akagi Haruko."

"Oh, Akagi's little sister? Cool, another girl to talk to!" Erin said cheerfully. "My name's Erin McNally, but just call me Erin. There're five more of us living in this big old house. Melina Anderson I'm sure you've met already; she's the one who led you here. CJ Carter is in the kitchen; Ciel Duvalier is in the library; Aleine McAlistair is at the pool; and Jesse Drakensburg is at the court. If ever I run into any of them, I'll drag them over here so you can meet them."

At that moment, she got a brilliant idea. "Hey, I know! How about I give you a tour? That way even if I left you on your own you wouldn't get lost, and Haruko can meet the others!"

With that idea in mind, Erin led the others to the kitchen, where CJ was sitting on the counter and staring at the oven. Just as they entered, there was a light ping, and she opened the oven door to pull out a tray of chocolate chop cookies.

Erin smiled as she sniffed the air. "Mmmm, smells good!"

CJ grinned good-naturedly as she transferred the cookies to a plate. "Thank you very much!" She glanced at the faces all around her, and noticed Haruko standing close to Ayako. "Hey, you're a new face!" What's your name?"

"Akagi Haruko," the girl replied softly.

CJ's smile grew wider. "Hi Haruko! I'm CJ Carter, but just call me CJ. So you must be Akagi's little sister, huh?"

Haruko nodded in response.

Erin turned to them, and led them out of the kitchen. "Come on, let's go to the poolside. Aleine ought to be there right now."

*        *        *

Aleine stared up at the sky, squinting at it, trying to memorize the shape of the passing clouds. After a moment, she picked up her pencil, and rapidly began to sketch.

At that moment, the door to the pool from the main house opened, and she heard many footsteps heading her way.

She didn't need to look to know who it was. "What are you doing here, Erin?"

"Hey Aleine, look up."

Aleine peered at them from the top of her sketchpad, and realized that Team Shohoku was peering down at her. When her eye fell on Mitsui, she smirked. "I didn't expect to find you here, do'aho."

Mitsui scowled. "I didn't know you sunbathed, Snow Bitch. Don't you melt at all in all this heat?"

Aleine's smirk became wider. _Oh ho, feisty today, are we?_ "Fortunately, no. And how do you manage to talk? A do'aho isn't supposed to have a tongue." She put down her sketchpad, and ran a hand through her hair. She had done her usual morning laps around the pool, and spent the rest of the morning waiting for herself to dry out while she sketched the view through the skylight.

At that moment, she caught sight of another girl in the group. _Huh?_ She gazed at the girl, not noticing that she was making her squirm. "And who might you be?"

"A-Akagi Haruko," the girl stammered.

"Akagi…so you're Akagi's little sister," Aleine muttered. She gazed at her for another moment longer, then stood up, taking her sketchpad and towel with her. Without saying another word, she left Erin and the others at the poolside.

*        *        *

Jesse reached for the wrench, and used it to tighten a bolt on the wheel. When it had been screwed as far tightly as it could go, she picked up a rag, and wiped off the excess grease. _Almost done…_

"Hey Jess, where are you?!"

Jesse groaned. "Go away Erin! I'm not finished here yet!" She stood up, and wiped her arms with another clean rag, frowning when the oil streaks just grew longer. _Only water can get rid of this now._ When she turned, she saw Erin and Team Shohoku standing at the edge of the court.

Erin grinned wickedly at her. "Yo grease-monkey. You done with you little 'baby'?"

Jesse wanted to run and hide, because she didn't want the boys to see her looking so dirty, but it was too late. "Hi everyone! Sorry that you have to see me looking like I came out of some hole in the earth."

The members of Team Shohoku laughed at her joke, and she took the time to see who was present. It was during this time that she noticed another girl. With a smile, she walked over to the girl. "Hi! I'm Jessica Drakensburg! And you are?"

The girl smiled. "Akagi Haruko."

"Oh! Well Haruko, pleased to meet ya!" Jesse held her hand out for Haruko to shake. But when she realized how dirty her palm was, she grinned ruefully, and withdrew it. "On second thought, maybe next time."

"Well anyway, we'll be going to the library to see Ciel," Erin said, and she led the others away, heading towards the inner parts of the house.

When they were gone, Jesse sighed, and rubbed the back of her neck. Without a moment's hesitation, she walked over to the bucket filled with water, and poured the cool liquid over her head.

*        *        *

SPLASH!!!!!

Rukawa looked up when he heard the splash of water over something. _Nani?_

He saw Jesse standing there, an empty bucket in one hand and dripped water onto a puddle on the ground. The skin on her arms and legs was slick with moisture, and her wet T-shirt clung to her body and flaunted her shapely curves.

For the first time ever, Rukawa Kaede, the supposedly ice-hearted rookie of Shohoku High School, openly stared at a girl whom he SUPPOSEDLY had no feelings for.

Rukawa urged himself to turn away, but he could not. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her.

"You want something?"

He was sent crashing back to reality when Jesse spoke to him. He resumed his ice-cold demeanor, and answered her. "Nothing."

With that, he walked away from the court in a daze, his mind reeling with but one thought, _WHY HER?!?!?!?!_

*        *        *

Ciel looked over the documents that her uncle in Paris sent her, trying to see if the trade contract would be beneficial for both France and Nigeria.

A knock sounded on the door. Without even looking up from her papers, she said, "Enter."

The door of the library creaked open, and Erin poked her head in. "Ciel?"

Ciel glanced at Erin, peering at her through her glasses. "Yes?"

Erin opened the door more fully, and Ciel realized that Team Shohoku was there, most of them smiling at her in greeting. Ciel smiled back as she put aside the contract and removed her reading glasses. "Hello everyone. I'm sorry if I wasn't able to go down earlier. I had to attend to some papers my uncle from Paris sent me." She paused when she noticed an unfamiliar face amongst those gathered. With a smile, she got up from her chair, and approached. "Hello. I don't think we've had the pleasure of meeting yet. I'm Ciel Duvalier, but everyone just calls me Ciel. And you?"

The girl smiled shyly. "Akagi Haruko."

Ciel smiled back. "Haruko…I see, you must be Akagi's little sister." She glanced at Erin. "Where are the others?"

Erin shrugged back in answer. "On you know, the usual."

Ciel was about to ask something else, but then the intercom beeped, and CJ's voice resounded in the library. "Hey Ciel, lunch is ready. Mel's down here already, and so is Aleine. Bring the others down here too."

Ciel sighed, and pressed the button on the intercom. "Yes, we'll be down in a moment." She released the button, and glanced at her companions. "Let's have lunch, shall we?"

*        *        *

Jesse checked the engine one last time before turning it off. She removed her helmet, and smiled to herself. _At last, peace and quiet. _

She had taken her Harley out for a test drive after she had managed to fix it, and she knew she would never make it back in time for lunch. Because of this, she decided to pack a picnic lunch for herself.

Just then, she heard a rustling noise behind her. She turned around, and noticed a tall figure standing there, a figure with black hair, pale skin, and dark blue eyes. _Rukawa._

Jesse smiled at him. "Hey."

Rukawa only glared back at her. "Hey."

"What are you doing here?"

"Nothing."

"Are you lost?"

No response. 

Jesse smirked. Though he hadn't said anything verbally, his body language spoke volumes. _He's not only lost,_ she mused, _but irritated and hungry to boot. _She simply shrugged, and turned away. "Fine. If you'd like to know, it's lunchtime already and the others have probably started by now. You better get on back to the mansion. Aren't you hungry?"

Rukawa didn't respond.

Jesse rolled her eyes. _If that's what he wants, then that's just fine and dandy. I won't budge unless he asks me to._

*        *        *

Mitsui was smiling to himself as he followed the others towards the dining room. _These girls are really well off; I bet that the food will be great!_

They stepped into the dining room at that moment, and he felt his heart sink a little. The setting was very formal, and he hadn't had any experience with it yet.

They took their places at the huge table, and Mitsui felt himself stiffen when he looked at his place. There were more than seven pairs of forks and knives; three spoons; and three glasses. _How am I supposed to eat like this?! Which fork am I supposed to use first?!_

He glanced at the seating arrangement. All the guys were lined up on one side, while all the girls were sitting together on the opposite side. Aleine was sitting to his right at the head of the table, and CJ had the place across from him. Riyota was seated to his left, and Ayako had the seat across from him. To Miyagi's left sat Hanamichi, and Haruko across him. Next to Hanamichi was Akai, and Ciel had the place in front of him. Kogure and Erin sat across the table from each other, and Melina sat to Erin's right. There were two vacant seats: one in front of Melina, and another to Melina's right, at the head of the table.

Mitsui realized that there were two people missing. _Where are Rukawa and Jesse?_

*        *        *

Rukawa glared at Jesse as she walked back to her Harley, and opened the seat compartment. She brought out a blue-checkered cloth, and a small wicker basket.

He watched as Jesse unfolded the cloth, and lay it out on the grass. He felt his stomach rumble in response as she opened the basket and brought out an assortment of sandwiches, canned drinks, and fruits. He wanted to ask her for something to eat, but his pride wouldn't allow for it. 

So Rukawa Kaede simply stood there, watching Jesse as she ate, debating with himself over what he should do. _I want to ask her, but that would make me look weak! But she's just a GIRL for crying out loud! This shouldn't be too hard…_

He felt something bump against his chest, and instinctively, he caught it. He glanced at the object, and realized that it was a bright red apple. 

_Nani?_ He glanced up at Jesse, and noticed her smirk as she looked back at him. "What's this?"

"An apple, what does it look like?" Jesse answered.

Rukawa narrowed his eyes. "That's not what I meant."

Jesse tilted her head back slightly, as if challenging him. "Then what DO you mean, Kaede?"

Rukawa blinked in surprise. "You remembered my name."

"Of course," Jesse replied with a shrug. "I don't easily forget the names of those I've challenged."

Rukawa's surprise dissipated into irritation. _So that's her way now, is it?_

But Jesse didn't react to that. Rukawa wasn't sure if she had noticed or she didn't really care. She smiled up at him. "Aren't you going to eat?"

*        *        *

Ciel glanced down the table, checking up on the others to see if they were still alright. She had figured as much that their guests weren't that used to eating with cutlery and silverware, especially Mitsui, Hanamichi and Riyota. The noise they were making was deafening, not to mention irritating, so she decided to help them and spare the others the misery.

She turned to Haruko, and whispered to her, "Hey Haruko, could you do me a small favor?"

Haruko glanced at her, blinking innocently. "Sure. What do you want me to do?"

"Why don't you…HELP Hanamichi a little, hm? He obviously doesn't really understand how to use a knife and fork. And tell Ayako the same thing so she can help Riyota."

"But what about Mitsui-san?"

Ciel glanced at Aleine, and noticed that the latter was gazing at Mitsui as though he were a toy she intended to play with. _Not good. _"Err, I think Aleine will take care of Mitsui."

Haruko nodded, and passed the message on to Ayako. After a few minutes, the noise had been reduced considerably. Ciel smiled in satisfaction._ My eardrums have been spared._

However, a few seconds later, there was a sharp cracking sound, that of many pieces of glass shattering. Ciel looked up, and realized that Hanamichi had accidentally broken the glass he was using because his grip was too strong.

Almost everyone at the table found this a little funny, except for Akagi and Kogure, who looked extremely embarrassed, and Aleine, who looked just plain irritated. She signaled to one of the maids who stood waiting near the kitchen door. "Clean that up and give him a new glass. An ordinary one, if you may; I don't want to see any more Venetian crystal pieces ending up as shards in the trash bin."

Silence fell over the table, and for a while, no one spoke. Ciel sighed, and simply munched her salad quietly. _This is NOT good at all._

*        *        *

Jesse watched Kaede eat, her half-smile still on her face. The guy ate at a painfully slow pace, quite unlike the guys Jesse was used to seeing. Not that she was in a hurry, at any rate. The others weren't expecting her to be back until late in the afternoon, anyway. _But Kaede's friend will probably want him back early._

She waited a few more minutes, making sure that Kaede wasn't going to eat anymore. Once she had confirmed this, she started to clean up, putting the empty cans and plastic wrappers in the basket.

Kaede stared at her, watching her with his cold blue eyes. After a while, he bent down, and started helping her put everything away.

Jesse blinked in surprise. _Why is he helping me? I didn't think he would…_ She peered at him closely, trying to get past his cold façade, and grinned. "Why Kaede, I never knew you could be such a gentleman!"

Kaede didn't stop moving, and he didn't look at her, but there was no mistaking the small blush that colored his pale face momentarily.

Jesse did her best to stop the laughter that was welling up inside of her. She folded the blanket, picked up the basket, and placed both items in her Harley. She glanced at Kaede as she got on her bike, "I think that it would be best for the both of us if we went back now. By the time we get there, the others ought to have finished their lunch. We can have a game later this afternoon. Maybe you can settle your score with me then, hm?"

Kaede's eyes flashed in her direction, and Jesse thought she caught the hint of a cocky smile on his face. He walked up to her, and got on her bike.

Jesse shook her head. _Very cute guy, very good player, and VERY big ego. _She put her helmet on, and lent her spare to Kaede. With that, she started up her Harley, and roared off through the forest, heading for the mansion.

*        *        *

Erin shifted uncomfortably in her seat. The silence was almost unbearable, the only sound coming from Mitsui's clattering silverware. _Please, please, SOMEONE talk about something, ANYTHING!_

At long last, CJ spoke up. She grinned brightly, and asked, "So, when's your next game? Who'll you be playing next?"

Almost everyone perked up. "Our next game will be tomorrow," Akagi answered. "We will be playing against Shoyo."

Ciel looked up suddenly. "Shoyo?"

Kogure nodded. "Hai. They're a very good team; one of the Top Four in Kanagawa." His face became one of curiosity. "Why, do you know about them?"

Ciel lowered her head again, and Erin noticed the small smile on her lips. "Yes, sort of."

This set off a talk about Shohoku's past games. Erin learned that Shohoku hadn't been able to get even to the finals of the Inter High yet, but that they hoped to do so this year, now that their lineup was strong. They talked about Hanamichi's travails, and how he had dunked the ball on Naito's head when they had a game against Miuradai. 

This sort of talk continued for quite some time, until Aleine's voice cut through like an icy knife. "Mitsui, could you PLEASE, for the love of God, STOP making so much noise? You really DON'T know how to use a spoon, fork and knife, do you? Where have you been till now, some cave in the remote mountains living with wolves?"

Mitsui choked on a piece of fudge cake at that moment, but Aleine didn't make a move to help him. She merely glared at him with a look that would have made the Sahara freeze over.

Erin shook her head. _That Aleine…_ She folded her napkin neatly, and placed it on the table. She smiled at the others. "Now that everyone's finished, why don't we play, hm? We can wait until Rukawa and Jesse get back, then we can REALLY have fun!"

That seemed to bring the spirits of the guests up a notch or two as they gamely got up and walked out the door of the dining room.

Erin waited until most of the others were gone, then she approached Kogure, and tugged his sleeve. "Hey."

Kogure glanced at her momentarily. "Is something the matter?"

"Listen Kogure, I want you to do a little favor for me." Erin reached into her pocket, and brought out her wallet. She pulled out several hundred-dollar bills, and placed them in Kogure's hand. "Take Mitsui and the guys out to a good dinner; someplace nice, and let them eat all they want. If the money isn't enough, pay for the deficit, and I'll pay you back. If there's change, you can have it."

"But Erin-san, this is too much! You don't have to do this," Kogure protested.

Ciel appeared at Kogure's side. She had been waiting outside the door for Erin, and had heard the entire exchange. "It's just fine. After all, we don't think that Mitsui got to eat much."

Erin nodded. "My point exactly. So you go out, have a nice dinner, and keep the change. Go clubbing or something. Whatever."

Kogure looked at the two of them for a while, then smiled a little. "Arigatou gozaimasu, Erin-san, Ciel-san. I owe you a lot now."

Erin grinned broadly. "Y'know, there IS something you can do to return the favor. Win the game with Shoyo. That's all I ask. Your winning will be better than paying me back with money."

Kogure smiled broadly. "I promise, Erin-san."

*        *        *

Mitsui frowned when he felt his stomach grumble. _Oh no, this is NOT good. _He hadn't had the change to eat a decent lunch because of the cutlery problem, and the snack of cookies and water that CJ had brought them while they were playing basketball just wasn't enough. _I need my strength for the game versus Shoyo tomorrow._

Suddenly, Kogure said, "Oi, could you guys wait a moment? I need to do something for a minute." With that, he walked away from their group, and entered…a bank.

Mitsui blinked, surprised. _A bank? What would Kogure do there?_

Moments later, Kogure came out, counting a thick wad of paper bills in his hand.

Mitsui's eyes widened. He smirked as Kogure walked up to him. "Wow Kogure, you never told us how rich you were. Why do you never treat us out, eh?"

Kogure smiled back at him. "And that's what I'm going to do right now. That's why I have all this money."

"You don't always have so much money," Akagi said suddenly. "Where did you get that?"

"Erin-san gave it to me," Kogure answered. His voice was soft that Akagi didn't hear it, but Sakuragi did. He threw his head back, and laughed so loudly it echoed off the walls of the nearby buildings. "NANI?! Erin-san gave you money?! Then that means she's your girlfriend already!"

Mitsui snickered as Kogure's face turned five shades of red, and he ducked his head to hide his blush. It was a very rare thing to see the usually calm and collected "Megane-kun" look so flustered.

After a moment, he looked up, grinning. "Anyway, let's have dinner. It'll be my treat."


	6. Chapter Five: We Meet Again

Chapter Five: We Meet Again 

Aleine sped down the highway, her Ferrari's engine roaring as she pressed harder on the gas pedal. _Gotta make it on time…_

She ignored the shrieks and cries of outrage as she whizzed by pedestrians. She didn't give a damn about any of them. After all, no decent person stands in the way of a Ferrari. Especially if SHE'S the one behind the wheel.

She reached the gate of Shoyo just as the end of a Jaguar disappeared into it. She followed it in, and parked beside the other sports cars her friends drove.

Aleine smirked as she lifted her sunglasses from her face, perching them on her head. _We must be quite a sight, _she mused as she walked alongside her friends, ignoring the stares of the Shoyo students.

For this day, they had dressed to watch a game, but still with the impeccable fashion sense that never failed to make them look like celebrities or supermodels. Denim pants that hung low over the waist; garrison belts; Nike sneakers; and a variety of tops in different cuts, colors, and patterns. As for accessories, they often chose sunglasses, sleek body bags, and one piece of jewelry, usually a watch, bracelet or necklace. They all wore simple earrings, ranging from studs to small hoops.

Melina raised her eyebrow as she surveyed the scene. "Why does it feel like everyone's staring at us?"

CJ grinned. "Cause they've never seen anything like us before except maybe on TV." She winked playfully at a passing male student, who nearly fell over when she did so. "And besides, it isn't everyday that a group of New York girls comes around."

Aleine didn't react to that. She loved the way she could intimidate these other people simply by looking good. _Bow, lowly peons. Bow to your Queens!_

They entered the gym, and the sound of cheering and anticipation filled the air. Aleine's lips lifted up in a small smile. She enjoyed being in the midst of a crowd before a basketball game. The air crackled with energy and excitement, and made her feel enervated herself.

Jesse called to her. "Hey Aleine! Let's go find our seats!"

Aleine turned around, and followed Jesse up the stairs to the benches. They took a seat at the highest portion of the stands to get a better view of the games. She leaned back slightly, and crossed her arms. _Let's see how well Shohoku does._

*        *        *

Ciel watched patiently as the teams were announced. First was Shohoku. She watched as Akagi, Mitsui, Miyagi, Rukawa and Sakuragi walked onto the court. _The starting lineup seems pretty good, _she thought. _I wonder who will play for Shoyo?_

A loud cheer erupted from the other side of the gym, making Ciel look up in surprise. An entire wall of green-shirted people sat on the bleachers opposite them, each person holding a plastic soft-drink bottle in each hand.

Beside her, Aleine smirked. "Well lookie there, they've got a pep squad."

"That's no pep squad. That's the rest of the club members of Shoyo Basketball Club."

Ciel looked up, startled to hear a strange masculine voice. She saw a tall boy in a navy blue jacket, with a small smile on his face, blue eyes, and a really weird hairdo.

Aleine's eyes narrowed as she looked up at the stranger. "Who are you?"

The boy's smile became broader. "I'm Sendoh, Sendoh Akira." He turned to Ciel, and grinned ruefully. "Gomen nasai, but I thought you were CJ-san."

_CJ-san?_ Ciel smiled back at him, and said, "Oh, are you a friend of CJ's? She's right over there, beside Melina."

At the mention of Melina's name, the smile on Sendoh's face became wider. "Honto?! Ah, arigatou…err…"

"Ciel, Ciel Duvalier. And this is Aleine McAlistair." Ciel indicated Aleine, who simply stared back at the guy with her cold blue eyes.

Sendoh smiled politely as Aleine, then turned back to Ciel. "Thank you again, Ciel-san." With that, he walked off towards the end of the bench, where Mel and CJ sat next to each other.

Ciel smiled to herself. _So it seems I'm not the only one who has made new friends._ She glanced back at the court. Shoyo's starting lineup was about to enter.

A chant rose from the supporters of Shoyo as they started to thump the bottles against the other like drumsticks. "Ike, ike Shoyo! Hote, hote Shoyo!"

She sat at attention as Team Shoyo entered the gym. Several unfamiliar faces passed by, then she noticed one, a tall boy with black hair and dark eyes behind glasses. _That must be Hanagata._

Another deafening cheer rose from the Shoyo side as the last – and shortest – team member walked onto the court. Unlike the others, he had a Shoyo jacket draped over his shoulders, as though he wasn't going to be playing right away.

Ciel smiled. There was no mistaking who he was: short, light brown hair and deep blue eyes. _Fujima Kenji._

*        *        *

Fujima sat down on the bench after giving the team some last-minute advice and encouragement. He surveyed them with a proud smile on his face. _We've worked very hard these past few days. That work will not go to waste._

His eyes floated over the bleachers on the opposite side, looking at the crowd that had come to support Shohoku. He noticed that Kainan and Ryonan had turned up, and were currently seated on the bleachers at a maximum distance apart. He smirked. The rivalry between the two teams was so strong that if any of them looked at a member of the other team, sparks almost flew between them.

Meantime, the space between Kainan and Ryonan was filled in by a few other supporters of Shohoku. A row near the top caught his eye, and as he scanned the faces there, he saw one that made a gleam appear in his eye.

_That's her! That's the girl who nearly ran me over!_ He stared at her, and a strange smile that could only be described as infatuation appeared on his face. _She looks great._ Her long jet-black hair hung loose over her shoulders, partially covering a short-sleeved white top that had something printed on it in blue. Her purple eyes gazed back at him calmly, as though she knew he'd be there.

He grinned, and focused his attention on the game. _Arigatou, Kami-sama! This time, I SWEAR I'll get her name!_

However, his happy little bubble was burst when he realized something. _Wait a minute. What is she doing on Shohoku's side?_ His smile slowly turned into a scowl as he scanned the members of Team Shohoku. _Which one is she supporting? Akagi? Nah, he's not good enough in the looks department. Kogure? Too soft-spoken. Miyagi? Too arrogant. Mitsui? Same problem as Miyagi. The redhead? Too loud. Rukawa?_ Now his mouth turned downwards in a total frown. It made sense. After all, the guy was handsome in his own way, and an excellent player, or so he heard. He wasn't wanting in anything to impress a girl.

He lifted his chin slightly, and clenched his jaw in determination. _Well then, this is one girl he won't get._

*        *        *

Melina trained her gaze on the guy who sat on the bench with an old man. He was obviously a Shoyo player, but maybe only a reserve. Still, she was curious about him. "Sendoh, who's that guy on the bench?"

Sendoh was quick to answer. "That's Fujima Kenji, ace of Shoyo. He's the captain, manager, coach AND point guard all at the same time."

"Really?!" Melina asked in disbelief. "Wow, he must be really organized to handle all those roles at the same time. How does he manage to look so calm? I'd probably be crazy if I took on all those roles."

Sendoh grinned, and shrugged. "I don't know. I was wondering about that myself."

Melina didn't say anything anymore, just focused her attention on the game. Shoyo was the first to score. _This team has a definite height advantage, _she mused. _I wonder what Shohoku will do to compensate for that?_

As the game wore on, Melina realized something, and it concerned Akagi and a certain Hanagata, the center for Shoyo. _This doesn't look so good. Akagi is tall, and so is Hanagata. It wouldn't have been so bad if Hanagata weren't so fast on his feet. But Akagi's just too damn slow!_

There was a deafening cheer from the Shoyo side, making Melina snap out of her thoughts. Shohoku was lagging by nine points now, after that previous shot by Hanagata. "What did I miss?"

"Hanagata just performed a fade-away," Sendoh replied, the awe in his voice obvious.

Melina's eyebrow quirked up in a lazy way. "A fade-away? No big deal, I could do it blindfolded."

The lilt of a challenge was in Sendoh's voice. "You're quite confident when you say that. How will you prove it?"

"Sometime soon, Sendoh, you yourself will get to see how I play," Melina replied, and let her tonality close the subject.

*        *        *

CJ watched the game with a smile of interest. Shoyo's players were tall, and that would work for their side, but didn't mean there were no means of countering it. _Speed is going to be practically crucial here, as well as quick thinking. One wrong move and their heads will be lying on the chopping block. _

"What're your takes on this, CJ?" Melina asked in a quiet tonality.

"Not good," CJ answered. "If the point difference goes higher than a single-digit number, then Shohoku will be under the axe."

"Ooh, really?" Melina's eyes twinkled in anticipation. "This game gets better by the second!"

CJ sighed, and shook her head. _Mel's always into all this thrill stuff. That girl's probably got nerves of steel. _This was true, especially considering the fact that she enjoyed inline skating, skateboarding, and (whenever she got the chance) skydiving, bungee jumping, and snowboarding.

She stood up, and grinned at Melina. "I'll go get something to drink. You want anything?"

Mel nodded slightly, her attention too focused on the game. "Yeah, get me a Coke or something."

"Okay." CJ glanced at Jesse. "You want anything?"

Jesse didn't answer; she was too absorbed with the game.

CJ shrugged, and stood up, heading for the snack bar outside the gym. As she walked, she didn't notice a group of teenage boys stare at her in wonder and amazement.

*        *        *

Kiyota Nobunaga felt his jaw slacken as the girl walked by. His eyes followed her as she sauntered to the snack bar and started to buy some drinks.

_Beautiful…_ The girl was remarkably tall, with waist-length chocolate-brown hair that hung in a long thick braid down her back and held in place by a wooden hairclip in the shape of a rose. She had dark brown eyes, and slightly tan skin.

Her clothing was no less impressive. She was wearing a bright red short-sleeved top, which had an angel printed on the front holding a pitchfork with the words "I'm No Angel" above it. A pair of low-waist denim pants clung to her hips, and was held up by a striped red and black garrison belt. A pair of red and white Nike Shox sneakers peeked out from beneath the hem of her pants.

Kiyota felt someone nudge him in the ribs, and he looked up to see Maki glaring at him. "Leave her alone, Kiyota."

"What's wrong with looking at her?" Kiyota threw back at his Captain. "She's very easy on the eyes."

Even Jin agreed with him. "Kiyota's right, Maki-sempai. She IS very beautiful. What's wrong with looking?"

Maki simply rolled his eyes at them, and Kiyota knew that he was getting irritated with them. _The sad thing about Maki is that he's got a one-track mind. _

The girl had finished ordering and paying for her drinks, and was currently walking back to the gym. She smiled at them playfully, before heading back to her seat with her friends.

Kiyota grinned like a lovesick boy, which is exactly what he was. Maki had to drag him towards the gym so that they could continue watching the game.

In his heart, Kiyota vowed to find that girl again, Even if I have to scour Kanagawa from top to bottom to find her.


	7. Chapter Six: Halftime Surprises

Chapter Six: Halftime Surprises 

Ciel stretched as the bell rang for halftime. _At last!_ Shohoku had managed to keep a single-digit difference between their score and Shoyo's, thanks in part to that rebound Sakuragi made.

_Though I have to admit, I was rather surprised by that rebound, _Ciel mused as she followed the others back out to look for Shohoku. However, she realized that she had left her bag on the bench, so she had to go back and get it. As she ran back, she noticed her bag hanging from the hand of a stranger.

Ciel looked up at the face of the person holding her bag, and realized that he wasn't too much of a stranger. _Fujima Kenji._

*        *        *

Fujima smiled at the mystery girl as she walked up to him, her purple eyes gleaming. "I believe this is yours."

The girl quirked an eyebrow upwards teasingly. "How did you get my bag?"

_Two can play at this game. _"I'll tell you that if you give me your name first."

The girl laughed merrily at him. "Okay, okay, you have a point." She extended her hand. "The name's Ciel Duvalier, but you can just call me Ciel."

Fujima smiled at Ciel, glad to finally know who she was. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ciel-san." He shook her hand as he spoke.

"Just Ciel, please. So, how did you get my bag?"

"I saw you leave it on the bleachers as you left. I went there and got it, knowing that you would come back to get it."

Ciel smiled bemusedly. "I see."

"Oi Fujima! Finally got her name, I see!"

Fujima groaned inwardly as Hanagata approached. _Great timing, Hanagata…_

Hanagata grinned playfully at Ciel. "So you're the mystery girl who nearly ran Fujima over! You should have hit him, you know; you might have managed to knock some sense into him!"

"Toru…" Fujima growled as he punched his teammate on the arm.

Ciel merely laughed at their actions. "I don't know about knocking sense into Fujima; I think he's sensible enough." She held her hand out to Hanagata, and said, "And my name is Ciel Duvalier."

"Hanagata Toru." Hanagata peered closely at Ciel for a minute before saying, "You're French, aren't you?"

Ciel blinked. "Why, yes, that's right! How did you know? I don't think I have an accent when I speak…"

"Your name is the French word for 'sky'. And besides, your last name is very French-sounding."

Fujima glared at Hanagata. _He might be my best friend and all, but still…_ He hated to admit it, but the way Hanagata and Ciel were talking was making him feel jealous. _I've got to put a stop to this!_

Fujima cleared his throat, getting their attention. He gazed at Hanagata with a look that said, "If you don't get out of here NOW, I'm going to break all your bones after the game". "Hanagata, go and check in on the others. I'll follow you in a minute."

Hanagata got the hint apparently, because he started moving away from Ciel and towards their locker room. But he still wanted to tease him, because he said, "Oh, sure, I'll leave you two alone. Just don't do any funny stuff to her, okay Kenji?"

Fujima felt himself blush five shades of red before he managed to regain his composure. He looked around the corner, and yelled at Hanagata's retreating back, "Hanagata Toru! You're going to pay for this, you hentai!"

Behind him, Ciel snickered by herself. When he turned back to her, she composed herself, and said, "No need to worry or apologize. I know he only meant it as a joke." She turned away, her lips cracking into a smile. "I have to admit, though, that you're rather fun to tease."

Normally Fujima would have scowled at her comment, but surprisingly, he only grinned bashfully at her. "Ah, yeah, I suppose…" He quickly pulled himself together, and beamed at Ciel. "Anyway, why don't you come with me? There are a few other people I'd like you to meet besides Hanagata."

Ciel smiled prettily at him, and looped her arm around his. "I'd be honored."

*        *        *

Shinichi Maki stalked down the hallway, Team Kainan right behind him. As they walked, students jumped out of the way, whispering fearfully amongst themselves. Maki grinned. _This is feels great. Everyone gets out of your way._

However, as they walked round a corner, a girl came walking towards him, her head held high and her strides confident and graceful. As she walked, almost all the boys looked at her with love struck gazes, while the girls eyed her jealously.

Maki stopped walking, and watched her with a small smile. She was beautiful. No, more than beautiful: she was stunning, lovely, and just drop-dead gorgeous. She had long silver hair that hung all the way down to her knees, and icy blue eyes that looked like they were carved out of blue glass. She was tall, and her skin was very pale.

Her clothes seemed to suit her model looks. She wore a chic-looking white halter top with a graffiti design on it in black. She had matched this with a black leather skirt that barely touched the top of her knees, and knee-high leather boots with very high heels. Around her waist she had draped a silver chain belt with a small crescent moon dangling from the end. A pair of Ray-Bans with black frames was perched on her head.

The girl stopped in front of him, and sized him up coldly. Maki returned her gaze steadily, and realized, with a smirk, that she wasn't scared of him one bit. _Well, well, well! This is a first!_

The girl spoke then, her words having an American accent. "Excuse me, but could you please get out of my way?"

Maki smirked, and stepped back from the girl's path. He felt the hesitation of his teammates, but they imitated him anyway.

The girl smirked, then walked past them; her long locks swinging as she strode past.

Maki watched her go, his own smirk never wavering. His eyes drifted over the expressions of his teammates, and noticed that Jin had a weird look on his face. He raised an eyebrow in question. _Eh?_

Just as they were moving on, Jin turned to him, and said, "Maki-sempai, I need to do something on my own for a minute. I'll just meet you later." Without further explaining where he was going or why, he turned, and sprinted off after the silver-haired girl.

Maki's smile broadened. _This should be interesting. _He waited until Jin had disappeared round the bend, and then went after him, the rest of Kainan following him.

*        *        *

Aleine continued to walk down the hall, heading towards Shohoku's side of the gym. She had gone to her car for a few minutes to put her bag in the trunk, as she was tired of lugging it around with her.

As she got closer to her destination, she noticed three guys standing at the entryway, effectively blocking her path. She glared at them. "Get out of my way."

One of the men looked up, and grinned maliciously when he saw her. "Well, well, well, what do we have here?! Are you lost, little girl?"

Aleine felt her blood boil. In a voice so cold it could have created a snowstorm in the middle of the gym, she said, "I'm not lost and I'm not a little girl. Now you three do'ahos had better get out of my way before I decide to break your necks."

That evidently pissed them off. The three men glared at her, straightening up. One of them – the leader, apparently – began cracking his knuckles. "You'll pay for that insult, little girl."

Aleine smirked. "Bring it on, boys."

Just as the first of the men was about to make the punch, a voice sailed over from the other end of the corridor. "So that's where you've gone! I was looking all over for you!"

_Huh?_ Aleine turned, and saw a tall boy with black hair, dark eyes, and wearing a yellow and purple jacket jog up to her, a smile of relief plastered all over his face.

Aleine gazed at him stoically as he approached. _Who the hell is he?_

The guy was now glaring at the three men. "It would be wise to leave her alone, if you value your lives."

The leader growled. "Shut up! Just because you're from Kainan doesn't mean I'll be scared of you!"

The boy tensed slightly in preparation for the blow, but it was stopped midway when another, more masculine voice called, "Touch one hair on their heads, and you die."

Aleine looked at the other end of the hall, and watched calmly as the group of boys she passed by a minute ago walked over to her. _What's this, the Three Musketeers times four? Or the Knights of the Round Table?_

The leader of the bullies took a step back, and lowered his fist. He snorted. "Hmph. No wonder you're so cold, girl; you're from Kainan, and obviously favored by the basketball team. You're just lucky, but one of these days, we'll get you." With that, the three men strode off towards the exit.

Aleine watched as they walked off, and smirked. _Cowards._ She turned to the boys who had "helped" her, and said, "You should've just left me alone. I could have taken care of them myself."

One of the boys smirked at her. He had a well-defined physique; a chiseled, masculine face; and a small mole just beneath his left eye. A lock of his brown hair hung over his forehead. "You don't look like you can, though." He shrugged nonchalantly then. "But it doesn't really matter now. By the way, I'm Shinichi Maki, captain of Team Kainan."  
  


Aleine stared at him before answering. "The name's Aleine McAlistair. Just call me Aleine."  
  


Shinichi Maki smiled, and began to introduce her to the rest of Team Kainan. Out of the entire bunch, only two stood out: Jin Soichiro, the guy who had come to her aid; and Kiyota Nobunaga, who had longish black hair and mischievous dark eyes.

Somewhere inside the gym, another bell rang out, signaling the end of halftime. Aleine was about to go back to her friends, but Maki said, "Why don't you come with us?"

Aleine eyed him and Team Kainan from top to bottom, then gave a slow, almost lazy smile. "Fine, let's go."

*        *        *

Sakuragi Hanamichi walked onto the court, a huge smirk on his face. He was feeling VERY confident, especially after that rebound he performed at the last minute. Haruko had told him that his rebounding was crucial to the game, and the more made, the better.

_But I still need to get more points than the kitsune,_ he thought as he glared at Rukawa. He scowled as more black thoughts entered his mind.

He glanced around the court, looking for the other schools. He had heard that Ryonan and Kainan had come to watch the game. He smirked. _Maybe they came to watch the King of Rebounds show his stuff!_

A flash of blue caught his eye, and he turned to look at it. What he saw caught him completely by surprise. He saw Melina and Sendoh Akira talking and laughing together, and with them were CJ and Koshino Hiroaki. The two girls walked with the two Ryonan players, and sat down on the Ryonan side of the gym.

Hanamichi felt the heat rising in his head as he glared at Sendoh and Koshino. _How dare they?! How dare they kidnap Melina-san and CJ-san?!_ He shot daggers with his eyes at Sendoh. _You, Smiley, will pay for the insult and for taking Melina-san away from our side!_

A familiar laugh echoed to him from the Shoyo side of the gym, and he turned to look. And there, walking right past him, was Fujima, with Ciel right beside him, the two of them laughing and smiling about something. _Nani?! The reserve player got Ciel-san?! How DARE he?!_ By now Hanamichi was smoking at the ears.

But that wasn't the final blow yet. At the stands near the top, a glimmer of silver was to be seen, and what he saw made his blood pressure go right through the roof. Aleine was seated amongst the Kainan players, right between Shinichi Maki, the captain, and Jin Soichiro.

He couldn't contain himself any longer. He grabbed Kogure, and pointed out where the four girls were with their "kidnappers". "Hey, hey, Megane-kun! Look what's happened to Ciel-san, CJ-san, Melina-san and Aleine-san! They've been kidnapped by Shoyo, Ryonan and Kainan!"

Kogure wrenched himself free from Hanamichi's grasp, and went back to the bench. "They'll be alright, Sakuragi-kun. They can take care of themselves. And besides, who they make friends with is none of our business."

Still, this didn't calm Hanamichi down. He glared at the players of Ryonan, Shoyo and Kainan, thinking about what he would do to them later to punish them for taking away his "fans".


	8. Chapter Seven: Rivalries

Chapter Seven: Rivalries 

Jesse tilted her head back, and shifted her shoulders, feeling the bones in her back pop to release tension. She hadn't left the gym even during halftime, since she was afraid to miss anything. Even when Ayako invited them to go to the locker room, Jesse declined, the invite – even if it DID mean getting to see Rukawa shirtless. She smirked at the thought. _The perfect way to get back at him for seeing me soaking wet from before. _

In the meantime, Jesse busied herself by chatting with Fuji and Matsui, Haruko's best friends, and Haruko herself, along with Mito Yohei, one of Sakuragi's friends. While waiting for the game to start again, Jesse let Yohei rattle off about Sakuragi's travails, especially in his love life.

Jesse snickered when Yohei told her about how Sakuragi was dumped fifty times. "Hah, that's nothing. My friend Melina has dumped 58 guys in the span of three years."

Yohei's jaw dropped. "Nani?!?!? 58 guys?!?! 58?!?!?!"

"Yep. That's why we call her a 'Black Widow'; she's never had a boyfriend before, and the longest time a guy courted her was two weeks."

Yohei blinked a couple of times as he tried to digest the information. "Wow, that's amazing. She must be very picky."

"That's very strange," Haruko remarked. "I wonder why she doesn't have a boyfriend. If I were her, I'd have a boyfriend already."

Jesse shrugged as she watched Shoyo and Shohoku go to the center of the court. "She's a smart girl, that Melina. She really looks for one guy out of many who will make her happy, and she'll stay with him for a long time."

Fuji grinned at her teasingly. "And what about you, Jesse-chan? Do YOU have a boyfriend?"

Jesse gave a half-smile, and looked to the court, her eye almost automatically falling on Rukawa. "No, not now, at least. But someday, maybe I will."

*        *        *

Ciel's eyes widened as Shohoku started to get on a winning streak. From her seat beside Fujima, she could see every single dunk, three point shot and rebound made by the opposing teams. 

But Shohoku was gaining. Mitsui had revealed his talent at three-pointers, and Hanamichi was making one rebound after another. In just a few minutes, they had not only caught up to Shoyo, they were LEADING by one point.

Ciel glanced at Fujima, and noticed him tense slightly as he gazed at the scoreboard. She watched as he stood up, and took off his jacket, laying it on the  bench. He walked up to the officials, and spoke to one of them in low tones.

The bell on the officials' table rang out. One of them flashed a placard with the number six printed on it. The corners of Ciel's mouth turned down just so. _Substitution…Fujima's going to play. _

Number six – Ito – walked off the court, while Fujima walked onto the court. His face was deadly serious, but his blue eyes were determined. As he wandered by Hanagata, he did a VERY odd thing. He reached out, and smacked his teammate on his…ah…DERRIERE.

Ciel sweatdropped as she looked on. _That was weird. _She turned to Ito, and asked, "Does he always do this?"

Ito grinned slightly as he wiped off his sweat with a towel. "No, not really. When he does that it's sort of like he's trying to wake them up and focus on the game."

"Ah, I see." Ciel returned her focus to the game, and kept silent, her gaze jumping between Hanagata and Fujima. She wondered to herself who would turn out to be the biggest asset to the team during this game.

The game continued. The ball was passed back and forth, back and forth. Ciel watched, her awe of Hanagata and Fujima growing with every shot. _They're brilliant, _she thought.

A loud cheer rose up from behind. Hanagata had scored a dunk. Ciel grinned, and clapped her hands as Hanagata ran by. "Bravo, Hanagata!"

*        *        *

Hanagata grinned at Ciel, and waved as he ran past her, acknowledging her compliment. _Arigatou, Ciel-san. _

A raucous cheer rose from their side, making Hanagata pause in mid-step. _Nani?_ He turned to look behind, and saw that Fujima had managed to steal the ball from Shohoku, and was running over to the other side of the court. None of Shohoku was there to defend, so Fujima did the lay-up with ease and no trouble.

Though his other teammates felt happy about it, Hanagata was confused. _Fujima isn't always this impulsive, _he thought. _What could have gotten into him?_

*        *        *

Fujima smiled satisfactorily as he ran back to their team's side to play defense. He slid a sideways glance to Ciel, and realized that she had an amazed look on her face.

He smiled. _Mission accomplished! _He had taken a gamble on that stealing bit, but it had given him the results he needed. Not only had he made a score, he had managed to impress the girl whom he now considered his new crush. If he played his cards correctly, he'd not only win the game, but get Ciel's attention as well.

His gaze drifted over to Hanagata, and noticed the tall center looking at him with a gaze of mingled concern and curiosity. He shook his head slightly, and returned his focus to the game at hand. _This is idiotic. My best friend and I are getting all jittery over a girl… This isn't right._

The game moved on, and Shoyo was in the lead. Fujima grinned. _We might have a chance to win this yet!_

*        *        *

Jin sighed as he leaned back slightly. Shohoku had called for a timeout a few moments ago, and that allowed him a break from scrutinizing the game for flaws and other points. He glanced at the girl named Aleine, and noticed a small smirk on her face.

"The do'aho's tired already," she murmured as if to herself. "If he isn't careful, he won't be able to shoot properly."

Jin raised his eyebrow. _Who is she talking about?_ He glanced at the Shoyo side. Their players were winded, but didn't seem exhausted. He looked at the players of Shohoku, and noticed that the player in jersey number 14 – Mitsui Hisashi – was leaning forward slightly, sweat dripping off his body, his shoulders heaving from weariness. _Was she referring to Mitsui?_

It was obvious. After a while, Aleine spoke again. "Anzai should pull him out. Any longer on the court and he'll collapse."

Maki spoke up then. "She's right. If Mitsui hangs around any longer, he'll push himself to the limit and the result will be severe exhaustion."

"But he is much too essential to the game," Aleine murmured. "Him and that baka redhead…they're the keys to Shohoku winning this game."

Jin stared at his sempai and at Aleine. _They seem to be on the same wavelength. This is kind of creepy. _

Thirty seconds were up, and the game got underway. However, he was only mildly surprised that Mitsui wasn't benched. _That was a gamble on Mr. Anzai's part. But he'll probably make full use of Mitsui's skills until the last minute._

And it seemed that Mitsui wasn't going to go down that easily. He attempted to shoot, but apparently he was hasty, because the ball bounded off the edge of the ring.

A sarcastic laugh sounded from beside him, startling Jin and Maki. They both glanced at Aleine, just in time to hear her say, "Baka do'aho! You're straining yourself too much! Relax and take shooting slow!"

Jin and Maki looked at each other, their eyes showing their surprise. They both began to wonder just what sort of connection Aleine had to Mitsui. As their gazes jumped from the silver-haired girl between them and the three-point shooter of Shohoku, it suddenly dawned on them that Aleine was Mitsui's…

Jin blinked, and shook his head to clear his thoughts. _I doubt it. She doesn't seem to show any signs of affection for him, and it looks like he doesn't know she exists. But still, there might be another meaning behind her harsh words…_

*        *        *

Erin frowned as she continued to watch the game. _This isn't too good…_ Shohoku was lagging behind, and Mitsui and Hanamichi were in trouble. Mitsui was much too tired to continue, and Hanamichi had garnered four fouls already.

"Shoyo's a very strong team. Shohoku will be hard-pressed at trying to topple them."

Erin turned, and saw Ciel walking up to her. She grinned slightly as her friend sat down beside her. "You're back. What're you doing here? I thought you and your date were happy on Shoyo's side?"

Ciel blushed slightly, and shook her head. "Fujima WAS NOT my date. He just wanted to talk with me a while, and I felt the same. But now that he's got his mind on other things, I felt pretty awkward sitting alone, so I decided to make my escape."

"How DID you get to sit there, by the way?" Jesse asked as she took her eyes off the game to ask Ciel the question. They all knew that only the players, coaches, managers and their assistants were allowed on the court. All others had to wait on the bleachers.

"He passed me off as an assistant manager," Ciel replied with a shrug. "And he made it so that I could leave anytime I wanted. I don't know what he said to the officials though. Either way, he's a pretty good fibber."

The supporters of Shohoku uttered a loud cry of dismay, causing the three girls to look back to the court. Mitsui was sitting on the floor, as though he had fallen. They watched as Kogure ran over to him, and helped him back up. Shohoku then called for a member change.

A smile flitted onto Erin's face as she watched Kogure remove his over-shirt and shorts to reveal him in Shohoku's uniform. He walked onto the court, his face hopeful, but not confident. _He's always had such a low opinion of himself. _

After more than a year of swapping email, Erin had somehow managed to find a dear friend in Kogure, who had initially described himself as "shy, kind of nerdy, and prefers to read books, surf the Internet and play basketball than hang out at the mall". He had provided good advice whenever she needed it, and had been the proverbial "shoulder to cry on" when her sisters and father died three months into their exchange of emails. During that particularly disconsolate time of her life, he and her other friends had been the rays of sunshine that kept her from falling into gloom.

_Where would I be right now if it hadn't been for you, Kogure, _she mused as she watched the bespectacled Shohoku player take his place with his teammates.

She adored his constantly cheerful demeanor and his peacemaker inclination. He had admitted to her that he hated conflict, and tried to avoid it as much as he could. He was simple, not wanting anything more than to achieve his goals and live in peace and quiet.

_And it doesn't hurt at all that he's rather cute, _Erin added to herself. All that basketball playing had given Kogure a fit, lithe build, which made him look like some hunk from a private school up in Oregon, or maybe even London. He looked great with glasses, but Erin knew he'd look better without them. She grinned. _Maybe I ought to get him to try contacts. Let's se how many fan girls he ends up with after that. _

Shohoku yelled suddenly, causing Erin to snap out of her thoughts. Her ears could hear them yelling a name, "Sakuragi! Sakuragi!"

_Eh, what'd he do?_ Erin turned to Ciel, and asked, "What happened?"

Ciel's answer was quiet. "Sakuragi made a slam dunk. Unfortunately, he ended up knocking down the two Shoyo guards. He's been fouled, and since its his fifth foul, he's going to be benched from now on."

"But Shoyo's in deep trouble now," Jesse said with a grin. "Shohoku's managed to narrow the gap between their scores, and now they've got two fresh players. Strength's going to be pretty important now."

The game went on. Shohoku was working doubly hard, and their efforts were paying off. They had miraculously managed to catch up to Shoyo; their scores were tied at 60-60.

Erin unconsciously started to nibble on her thumbnail as the ball was passed to Rukawa, who ran towards the Shoyo side of the court. Hanagata was there, and so was Ito, the two of them guarding the ring.

_Please make the shot, please make the shot…_ Erin prayed as Rukawa got closer, and then jumped. The two guards jumped with him. But Rukawa seemed confident with his shot, and he let the ball go. It flew towards the ring, and fell through without even touching the rim.

All around them the supporters of Shohoku were on their feet, cheering and yelling. Erin glanced at the scoreboard, and saw that the figures were now 60-62, in favor of Shohoku. The clock was running down to the last five seconds, and Erin knew that Shoyo didn't stand a chance now. _The game's as good as won. _

The buzzer rang, and Shohoku erupted into cheers. They had won.


	9. Chapter Eight: Betrayal (Or So the Tensa...

Chapter Eight: Betrayal (Or so the Tensai Says!) 

Ayako was walking out of the gym behind Team Shohoku, when a slim hand tapped her on her shoulder. When she turned, she saw Jesse grinning down at her, her eyes twinkling. "Congrats, Ayako!"

Ayako laughed, and jumped onto Jesse, hugging her tight. "Arigatou for being there for us, Jesse-chan."

Erin approached them then, her face also alight with her smile. "You didn't really need our support. You guys did it all on your own."

"But having you around helped us, especially where the morale is concerned," Kogure said with a grin as he approached the two girls.

"Nah, you didn't really need us," Erin said with a wave of her hand. "You did it all on your own. You did especially well, by the way."

Ayako's eyebrow went up slightly when she saw Kogure blush. _Nani? What's wrong with Kogure-sempai?_

Her musing was cut short when Sakuragi stalked over to them. "Well at least you two girls are supportive of us! Those other girls betrayed us!"

Ayako blinked. "Huh? What're you talking about, Sakuragi-kun?"

It seemed that Sakuragi's tempter was at its limit already, because he suddenly yelled, "JUST LOOK AT THEM!!!!!"

Ayako looked around, and understood immediately what Sakuragi meant. Ciel was walking amidst a group of rather miserable-looking Shoyo players. She was busily trying to cheer up a sulking Fujima and Hanagata.

CJ and Melina, on the other hand, were happily chatting with Team Ryonan, particularly to Sendoh and Koshino. The four people mentioned seemed to be having a good time in each other's company.

And as for Aleine, hers was the most shocking. She seemed to be chatting with Maki, Jin and Kiyota of Kainan.

"You see?!" Sakuragi hissed. "They betrayed us!"

"Who betrayed who?"

Ayako whirled around, and saw Melina looking at her with a curious expression. She grinned ruefully at the girl, and began, "Ah, well, you see…"

She hadn't even begun her explanation when Sakuragi turned to her, furious. "I thought you were our friends, Melina-san! Why did you go off with Smiley and his pals?!?!"

"Smiley?" Suddenly, Melina laughed. "Oh, you mean Sendoh! And what, may I ask, is so wrong with that?"

"They're our rivals! If you're really on our side, then why did you go with them?!"

"Like I said, what's so bad about that? Shohoku isn't the House of Capulet, and Ryonan isn't the House of Montague. I can be friends with anyone I want."

Sakuragi blinked, his anger quelled suddenly. "Capulet? Montague?"

Ayako sighed. _Sakuragi-kun doesn't understand Melina-san's analogy. _After all, not a lot of people used Shakespearean comparisons as if they were nothing.

But Melina just laughed at him, and shook her head. "Nothing, Hanamichi." With that she skipped off towards Ryonan, to be greeted by Sendoh Akira, who seemed to be smiling more than usual.

Ayako grinned. _Looks like the girls are more popular than they think._

*        *        *

"So how long have you been here?"

Melina shrugged. "Oh, a week or so. When you're on vacation, you tend to forget how much time passes."

Sendoh laughed in agreement. "Yeah, you're right."

"Where DO you live, by the way? I mean, when you're not on vacation?" asked Koshino.

"Haven't you figured it out yet?" CJ asked with a laugh. "We're New Yorkers, boys. Most of the time you can find us in the high circles of Park Avenue, but if all else fails, we'll be downtown, West-side."

"That means ghettos, in other words," Melina explained.

Koshino seemed surprised. "But isn't it dangerous there?! Why would you go there anyway?"

"Basketball," replied CJ and Melina in unison.

"Basketball?" Sendoh quirked an eyebrow upwards. "Why basketball?"

Melina sighed. "Our parents don't allow us to play what they call a 'boy's game'. They always insist that we play tennis or badminton or all those sissy games. But we don't want to. So whenever we feel the urge to play a game, we drive downtown and look for a court to play in.

Sendoh nodded slightly. "Oh."

*        *        *

Ciel patted Fujima's arm lightly. "Oh come on, don't be so sad! You did a great job!"

Fujima huffed, and pointed his eyes at the ground. He didn't want to talk much, not even to Ciel. The defeat by Shohoku was still too fresh for him. _I can't believe they actually beat us… It's all my fault. If I had played in the game earlier then maybe we would have won… Why did I have to be so damn overconfident?!?!_

"This is such a crushing blow to us, Ciel-san!" Hanagata exclaimed. "We were the second in the Top Four of Kanagawa, and Shohoku was nowhere near that point yet! Do you have any idea what this does to us?!"  
  


Fujima looked up just in time to see Ciel give a wry smile at Hanagata. "That's what ALL men say when they lose; can't you just accept defeat with the same grace you possess when playing?" She narrowed her eyes at the tall, black-haired, bespectacled teen. "But as for crushing blows, it looks like Hanamichi managed to nail one on you."

Hanagata's hand reached up, lightly touching the bandage beneath his right eye, on the point where Sakuragi's elbow came in contact with his face. "Oh, this? Don't worry about it, it's nothing…"

"Maybe to you, but it looks pretty bad to me." Ciel pulled Hanagata to a nearby bench, forcing him to sit down. "Sit. Let me take a look at it."

Fujima felt the bile rise to his throat as he watched Ciel and Hanagata interact. He watched as Ciel carefully removed the bandage with her right hand, while her left she placed beneath Hanagata's jaw to prevent him from moving too much. For some odd reason, he began to wish it was him who got hurt.

Ciel looked at the wound critically. "Hmmm…it's a little bruised around the edges, but other than that, it looks okay. At least it won't need stitches to hold it together." With that, she replaced the gauze covering, flattening it gently with her fingers. "Just be careful with it, okay? It could get worse if you don't watch out."

"Hai," Hanagata whispered as he fingered the wound. He grinned then. "It doesn't hurt half so much now."

Ciel laughed. "What are you trying to imply, Hanagata? That I have a healer's touch?"

"Maybe yes, maybe no. But if I were to answer you truthfully, I'd have to say…yes."

Ciel laughed, but it was tinged with a hint of sadness, something that Fujima hadn't heard in her voice yet.

Knowing that Hanagata had touched a nerve, Fujima moved towards Ciel, and asked, "Why did you go back to your friends, Ciel-san?"

The cloud of sadness disappeared quickly, and she smiled up at him. "Well, you and Hanagata were playing already, and I felt a little out-of-place on the bench. You said I could leave anytime I wanted to, so I did. I hope I didn't offend you or anything…"

"Oh no, you didn't offend, I assure you," Fujima said with a smile. "After all, a gentleman should not let a lady wait for him."

"Oh ho, so you're a gentleman now, eh? Did you bump your head sometime during the game, Fujima Kenji? Because I swear you didn't call yourself a gentleman when we first met!"

Fujima only laughed with her, sliding a sideways glance at Hanagata. _Okay, so maybe physically I didn't bump my head, but finding out that your best friend likes the same girl you do…well, that's a big enough bump all on its own._

*        *        *

"So you live near Central Park?"

"Uh-huh."

Maki grinned. "Honto? Is it really as big as everyone claims?"

Aleine shrugged as they walked down the parking lot. "Maybe. It's got a water reservoir, a few lakes, a castle, and a zoo. If you count the wooded areas, then yeah, Central Park is pretty big."

Maki smiled to himself. _Maybe this girl isn't so bad after all. _He continued to watch as Aleine strode over to a bright red car, and sat down on the back of it, facing them.

He felt his pupils dilate involuntarily when he realized WHAT kind of car she was sitting on. "Aleine-san, don't sit on that car!"

The girl coolly raised one eyebrow at him. "Give me one good reason why."

Maki was dumbfounded. "Err…ahh… Aleine-san, do you know what car that is?"

"Of course I do. Do you think I'm blind? It's a Ferrari V-35W; top of the line, actually. And very expensive."

Jin tried his luck with her. "If that's the case, why don't you get down? I'm sure that the owner won't be too happy to find a strange girl sitting on his car."

That did it. Aleine's eyebrows went up, and her eyes became tinged with a hint of ice. "HIS car?" She got up from the back, and walked over to the driver's side of the Ferrari. She reached into her bag, and pulled out a small object.

Maki squinted to see it better. It was a key-chain in the shape of the Ferrari logo, and had a key dangling from it. His eyes widened. _It can't be…_

Aleine tossed the key upwards, and caught it in her hand. "It's not a man's car, it's MY car." So saying, she unlocked the door, and slid into the driver's seat. She started it up, and pulled out of the parking space. She paused in front of him. "Ciao people. Be seeing you sometime…maybe." With that, she stepped on the pedal, and drove off, leaving Team Kainan to choke on her dust cloud.

Maki followed her with his eyes, and watched as she stopped in front of Shohoku. He noticed her say something to Mitsui, then drive off. In the meantime, Mitsui looked rather pissed off. _Just what is up with those two, _he wondered.


	10. Chapter Nine: Sendoh Meets His Match

Chapter Nine: Sendoh Meets His Match 

It was a warm Wednesday afternoon when Team Ryonan began to practice for their match versus Takezato. Though Uozumi knew that Ryonan could easily take down Takezato without him or Sendoh on the court, he had to prepare for any eventual surprises. _After all, Takezato might make a miracle happen…like what happened to Shohoku._

He had watched the game a few days ago, and he was VERY impressed with the improvement of Shohoku. _And to think that we had beaten them before…_ He frowned. _You're very good, Akagi. You managed to whip Sakuragi into shape in time for the game…but my team will do better. And I will show you my worth, Akagi._

Suddenly, Hikoichi came running up to him, his eyes dancing with delight. "Uozumi-sempai, there's someone who wants to speak with you."

"Hmmm? Who are they, Hikoichi?" Uozumi asked.

The first-year faltered a little, then replied, "Ah, I…I really don't know, Uozumi-sempai. The leader said she wouldn't give her name until YOU came to talk to her. And two of them are looking for Sendoh-sempai and Koshino-sempai."

_She?! _Uozumi glared down at Hikoichi, who quailed a little beneath his fierce gaze. "Did you say that these people are GIRLS?"

Hikoichi nodded. "H-hai."

Uozumi looked away from the first-year, and looked down the court. He noticed that the door was open, and silhouetted in the sun's glare were six girls. He was about to go up to them, but stopped when he saw Sendoh and Koshino approach them. He raised an eyebrow in curiosity. _Do they know each other?_

*        *        *

CJ watched with a growing smile as Koshino and Sendoh left their game to talk to them. She waved her hand. "Hey Koshino, Sendoh. What's going on with you guys?"

"Konnichiwa, CJ-san," Koshino said cheerfully as he walked up to her. We're training for our next game."

"Oh? Whom will you be playing against?"

"Takezato High?"

"Really? Good luck then…though I doubt you'll need it."

Koshino laughed. "I'd rather have that luck, CJ-san."

CJ nodded, and smiled at the teen standing in front of her. _He may be very serious, but he's got his light side too. Like someone I know…_ Her mind floated to a couple of days back, remembering…

~       ~       ~

CJ snickered as she watched Aleine leave, a stunned group of boys watching in her wake. She recognized them as the boys she saw when she went to get the drinks the others asked her to buy. With a smile, she walked up to them, her smile wide. "Sorry 'bout that. Aleine has a tendency to just leave other people behind. By the way, I'm Crisel Joy Carter, but y'all can just call me CJ. I'm Aleine's friend."

A tall boy with dark eyes, short black hair and an innocent face smiled at her, and said, "A pleasure to meet you, CJ-san. I'm Jin Soichiro of Team Kainan."

"Kainan eh?" CJ asked with a small grin. "And I'll be suspecting that you're basketball players too."

Jin nodded. "Hai." With that, he proceeded to introduce her to the rest of the team members.

One of them, Shinichi Maki, asked a question about Aleine. "Is she always like that?"

CJ laughed. "Yup. We sometimes call her the Ice Queen, but never say that in her face. She may be cold on the outside, but she's got a temper that can blow up Japan if the right buttons are pushed."

Kiyota Nobunaga laughed heartily. "At least YOU'RE not like her, ne, CJ-san?"

CJ smiled at the rather brash Kainan player, charmed by his forwardness and casual attitude. "Maybe, Kiyota. Maybe."

~       ~       ~

"Yo, CJ!"

CJ snapped back to reality, when Jesse's voice ran through her ears. "Wha?"

Jesse smiled down at her. "Daydreaming again, eh? D'you want to stay on the bench for a while and let us handle it?"

"Are you kidding?! I wanna play!" CJ exclaimed.

Jesse nodded. "Okay, it's settled. Mel, I'll keep you on the bench for the first half and let Erin play, but I want you to do something for me. I want you to watch Sendoh carefully; watch how he plays, see how he moves. While you're at it, try to think of a strategy, then I'll let you in on the second half. Deal?"

Melina nodded. "Fine by me."

"Good. Now, here's what we should do. I'll take Uozumi, since he's obviously the center. Erin, take Sendoh for the meantime. CJ, Koshino's yours. Ciel, the other guy's yours. And Aleine, take Ikegami. Our strategy is the same as what we used to deal with Shohoku: go easy in the first half, then get them in the last half," Jesse explained.

CJ grinned. "Cool by me. Now, let's show these boys what we're all about!"

*        *        *

Melina grinned as her friends came back at the end of the first half. "You guys unraveled them yet?"

CJ smiled at her, and nodded. "Pretty much. I already got my strategy in mind."

Jesse turned to her then. "Mel, I want you to play now. I think you're just what we need to knock Ryonan down."

Mel casually raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Why?"

Erin smirked. "Cause Sendoh's been staring at you since this game began."

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Simple. If you play, you'll be able to incapacitate him with your charm."

Mel blushed. "Oh come on, is he really that taken by me?"

Ciel smiled. "It seems so. If we take out Sendoh, then we cripple Ryonan. Of course, your skills would help a lot too. Even if Sendoh has a crush on you, he can still play pretty well."

Mel sighed. "Fine, fine, I'll play." She stood up, and went through a few stretching exercises to loosen her bones. She had warmed up a few moments ago, so all she had to do was wake her muscles up.

*        *        *

"Sendoh, WHAT is the matter with you?!" Uozumi demanded of the spiky-haired teen.

Sendoh winced as Uozumi's voice rang in his ears. "What do you mean, Uozumi-sempai?"

The reputed "King Kong" of Ryonan glared at him. "You know what I mean Sendoh! You'd better get your mind off that girl and shape up! Do you know how embarrassing this will be if the other schools find out we were beaten by girls?!"

Beside him, Koshino snickered, and Sendoh shot his friend a death glare. But he got his just desserts when Uozumi loomed over him. "And you had better shape up, Koshino! Now is not the time to ogle at girls with long brown hair and teasing smiles!"

Now was Sendoh's turn to laugh at Koshino's expense. _Hah! Serves him right for laughing at me!_

"Hey, you guys ready?"

Sendoh looked up, and his eyes widened. The girls had changed players, and instead of Erin, Melina was the one who was going to play. She was grinning at him, twirling the ball on the tip of her finger as she did so.

Sendoh didn't notice a silly grin creep on his face as he stared at her. Her shoulder-length hair was tied in twin pigtails, and though they were tied the tresses still glowed with a reddish hue. She was wearing a sassy black tank top with a red tongue of fire printed on the middle, and black shorts. Matching all this up was a pair of Nike Shox sneakers. _She looks great…_

Someone whacked him upside on the head, and when he turned to look, he noticed Koshino walking past him with a growing smile on his face. "C'mon Sendoh. We've got a game to play."

*        *        *

Hikoichi watched the ongoing game with awe in his eyes. _This is so amazing! I've never seen girls play like this before!_

He had never expected that these girls would be able to hold their own the way they had against his sempais. During the first half, the girls lagged behind by fifteen points, but now, the scores were tied up, thanks to the five successive three-point shots made by the silver-haired girl. And now, with the ball in their possession, they had to make another shot to gain the lead.

The one holding the ball was a girl with short auburn hair and dark brown eyes. Match this with a model-esque body, and she had to be one of the most alluring girls Hikoichi had laid his eyes on.

_But putting all beauty aside,_ Hikoichi thought, _she is awfully good if she can take on Sendoh-sempai._

There weren't a lot of people he knew who could take on Sendoh Akira. His sempai was very good, and going up against him meant going against one of Kanagawa's best. But the auburn-haired girl seemed to be holding her own, and was actually doing a good job at it.

He watched as the girl dribbled the ball while standing in front of Sendoh, the latter watching her warily.

Suddenly, the girl jumped, and looked ready to shoot. Hikoichi's jaw dropped. _She's too far from the basket to be able to shoot! Can she make it?_

Realizing that she would shoot, Sendoh jumped along with her, hoping to block her shot, no matter how impossible a shot it seemed.

Hikoichi watched with awe as the girl rose up in the air, her arms raised over her head. But suddenly, the girl's arms went down, and she PASSED the ball to the black-haired girl, who ran to the basket and dunked it.

The girls cheered as their score went up by two. She and the black-haired girl exchanged a high-five as they ran to the opposite end to play defense.

_How did she do that?! _Hikoichi wondered in amazement as he gazed with awe at Sendoh's female rival. _How come Sendoh-sempai wasn't able to read her moves?!_

He watched on a little more, and realized something startling. _Wait a minute. How come Sendoh-sempai seems to be STARING at her more than usual? And it's not because he's trying to see a weak spot in her defense, but because of something else…_ He grinned wickedly. _Hah! Beware Sendoh-sempai! I have finally found your weakness!_

*        *        *

Melina wiped the sweat off he forehead, and let out a tired sigh. _Well, at least that's done. _Their group had won, 39-30, but the gap would have been larger had Ikegami not managed to score those last three 3-pointers.

Sendoh smiled at her. "Are you alright?" He reached out, and pushed back a loose strand of hair from her cheek.

Warning bells went off in Melina's head at the contact. Almost instantly, her blood ran cold in her veins, and her head jerked away from his fingers on reflex.

Almost instantly, her face flushed a brilliant crimson, and she tried to avoid Sendoh's inquiring eyes. "Daijobou ka, Melina-san?"

Melina swallowed hard. _Pull yourself together girl! Now is NOT the time for this! _"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

She was glad when Erin came jogging up to her. "Hey Mel, great game!" She paused, eyeing her critically. "You okay, Mel? You're red all over."

Melina smiled weakly at her friend. "Actually, no, I'm not really okay. I-I feel a little hot. I think I've come down with a flu or something. I'll go home now, okay, Sendoh, Erin?"

Erin nodded, but was a bit concerned, while Sendoh didn't say anything. But Melina didn't give a damn. She walked towards her car, and drove back to the mansion. She walked for what seemed like hours to her room, and felt immense relief wash over her like a tidal wave when she saw the door. She entered her room, quietly closing the door behind her. And she lay down on her bed, and sobbed.

*        *        *

Sendoh stared at the spot where Melina had been standing, shock clearly imprinted on his face. _Nani? _He turned to Erin, and watched as the girl shook her head.

Erin sighed. "I'm sorry Sendoh. Mel's been acting a little weird lately."

"Does she always act like that?" Sendoh asked quietly.

"Like what?"

"Does she flinch whenever someone touches her?"

Erin blinked in surprise. "Huh? No. Why do you ask?"

Sendoh grinned then, covering up her initial question. "Oh, it was nothing. Just curious."

Erin looked at him skeptically, but she only shook her head. "Whatever. Great game, by the way. You guys were more of a challenge than Shohoku."

Almost instantly, Sendoh's eyebrow, as well as that of every Ryonan player in hearing range, went into orbit. "What do you mean, Erin-san?"

The sixteen-year-old in front of him smirked. "Are you really that thick-headed. We played Shohoku, and beat them. Of course, that was before the game against Shoyo, and they've radically improved since then. But you're quite good, either way."

"By how many points did you win?!" Hikoichi demanded eagerly.

Erin grinned slightly. "Sorry, no can tell. That's private already. Isn't it good enough for you to know that WE won?"

That seriously deflated Hikoichi, but made the other Ryonan players laugh. "You won't get any information from THESE girls, Hikoichi-kun!" Koshino yelled.

The girls laughed at this, and one of them – Jesse if Sendoh remembered correctly – said, "Don't worry, Hikoichi! You'll be the first to know the result of our game with Shoyo and Kainan!"

That got everyone's attention. Uozumi looked at Jesse with a stunned expression. "Nani?! Do you intend to challenge EVERY school in Kanagawa?!"

"Uh, not really EVERY school…just the ones we've got connections to," Jesse replied with a sweatdrop.

CJ spoke up then. "And what's so wrong with that, huh? Last time I checked, Japan was a free country."

"Hmph, they're just afraid of getting their pride hurt," Aleine said with a smirk. "All men have egos, CJ. It's a well-known fact. They've got to act all macho to prove their worth." She sighed, and turned around. "Anyway, I got to go. Ciao people." With that, she left the gym.

Sendoh sighed, and shook his head. Melina had told him that although Aleine may have had the most disagreeable temper of all six of them, she was a nice girl deep down.

_Nice girl…_ At that thought, Sendoh smiled, his thoughts flitting to Melina. Aside from being very pretty, she was quite intelligent and nice to boot. Most of the girls he knew of liked him only for his hard court skills, and because of he fact that he was a bit handsome. But Melina was different. She seemed to appreciate him for who he really was. She liked Sendoh the Person, not Sendoh the Star Player of Ryonan.

Suddenly, Erin exclaimed, "Whoa, look at the time! Sorry boys, but we really gotta go now!"

"When will we see you again?" Koshino asked, though his gaze was focused on CJ.

CJ shrugged, and grinned. "Whenever, whatever. We'll probably be around for quite sometime, so chances are good we'll be meeting again."

Koshino smiled. "I'll be looking for you."

*        *        *

Jesse giggled as she and CJ walked into the house. "Wow CJ, looks like you've got an admirer!"

CJ blinked curiously. "Eh? Who?"

Jesse shook her head at her friend's clueless behavior. "You mean to tell me you don't know? Does the name 'Koshino Hiroaki' ring a bell?"

CJ blinked back at her. "What about him?"

Jesse sighed. _She's clueless most of the time, but honestly, this is ridiculous! _"Nothing, CJ. Just thinking out loud."

"I wonder what could be wrong with Melina," Ciel murmured, almost to herself.

Erin shrugged her shoulders. "She'll be alright. Maybe she caught one of those 24-hour bugs. She'll be okay by tomorrow."

Jesse nodded in agreement, though part of her didn't agree with what Erin said. _Something's wrong with Mel, and it ain't no ordinary flu._

*        *        *

Melina jerked up from bed with a gasp. _What the…_ She looked around, and realized, to her infinite relief, that she was still in her darkened room, alone, in her own bed in their flat. She shook her head. _A dream, it was just a dream…_

Someone knocked on her door, and she gasped. "Who is it?"

"Mel, it's me, Ciel. Can I come in?"

"Yeah, sure." Melina sat up in bed, and watched as Ciel walked in, padding across the carpet in her bedroom slippers, her form casting shadows in the moonlight.

Ciel sat down beside her on the bed, her purple eyes glinting in the moon's glow. "Mel, are you okay? I heard you screaming from my room."

Melina sighed, and waved her hand. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a really bad nightmare, that's all?"

"You mean the one with the dolls again?"

"Yeah, that's the one," Melina answered with a laugh, though she only laughed to mask the fact that she was lying. _I hate lying to other people, especially to Ciel, but I don't want her to find out about this, not yet, at least. _Out of the six of them, Ciel was the most maternal, having a tendency to worry more about others than about herself. Aside from that, she was great with kids.

Ciel laughed with her, and patted her leg. "Jeez Mel, I thought you outgrew that already!"

"Old fears die hard, Ciel," Melina muttered as she whacked Ciel with her pillow, but she dodged it.

"It's good to see you're okay, Mel. Good night," Ciel said with a smile, and she left, melting into the night.

Melina hugged her pillow, and turned over on her side, swallowing against the lump in her throat. The night wouldn't be good to her; it never had been after the "incident". She squeezed her eyes shut, a few tears leaking out. _Why did I have to suffer like this?!_


	11. Chapter Ten: A Little Distance

Chapter Ten: A Little Distance 

Ciel smiled to herself as she sped down the road towards Shoyo High, her head filled with cheerful thoughts. _Mel's all right, we'll be staying here permanently, AND I'll be arranging for a game with Shoyo!_

Getting games with Shohoku, Kainan and Ryonan hadn't been too hard. All they had to do was call up the coaches, arrange for a specific play date, and swear them to secrecy. That was why Anzai hadn't interfered when they played with Shohoku, and Taoka hadn't  made a comment when they barged into the gym in the middle of practice when they played against Ryonan.

_But since the coach of Shoyo also happens to be a player, I'll probably be forced to drag Kenji away for a while so I can talk to him, _Ciel thought as she pulled into the parking lot. She got out of her car, and headed towards the gym, ignoring the stares of Shoyo students as she wandered by.

She reached the door of the gym, and noticed that it was partly open. From inside, she could hear the familiar thump of a ball against a wooden floor, and the squeal of rubber soles along it. Ciel lifted her hand, ready to knock, but then she heard shouting from inside. She stayed her hand, and listened…

*        *        *

Hanagata panted as he ran to the other end of the court to play defense. When he got into position, he yelled at Fujima, "Oi Fujima, pass!"

Fujima looked at him, and Hanagata flinched. The captain wore an expression of poorly concealed irritation on his face. Hanagata frowned. _What's the matter with Fujima? He's been acting really weird lately…_

Fujima didn't pass the ball to him, but ran past, and attempted to shoot. However, he failed miserably when he was blocked by one of the most junior and inexperienced members of the club.

Hanagata frowned. _Now I know something is DEFINITELY wrong. _He approached his best friend. "Fujima, daijobou ka?"

*        *        *

"Fujima, daijobou ka?"

Fujima looked up, and noticed Hanagata staring down at him with concern. _Oh gods, no! The last thing I need right now is HIS sympathy! _He waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "Hai, I'm fine, Toru."

"No you're not," Hanagata said with the quiet force that was his trademark. "No, you're not fine at all. Talk to me, Kenji. I'm not your best friend for nothing, am I?"

Fujima sighed, but kept quiet, his mind going back to the events of yesterday…

~       ~       ~

Hanagata rolled his eyes in an annoyed manner. "I really DO NOT understand why you'd want to go to the mall today, of all days. I thought that you were going to finish up your projects today."

Fujima grinned up at his best friend. "I told you, I need to buy a few materials from the bookstore! THEN I'll do my projects."

"I don't know how you dragged me into going with you, Kenji."

"I dragged you in because you're my best friend AND you have a car; I don't."

"True, but this is the LAST time I'm going to let you sit behind the wheel. You drive like a bat out of hell."

Fujima was about to toss back a remark about Hanagata driving like a snail, but the flash of silky black hair out of the corner of his eye made him turn. He frowned, however, when the hair belonged to another person, not the girl he had hoped to see.

Hanagata must have noticed his move, because he snickered then, and said, "Jeez Kenji, are you really THAT obsessed with her?! We've been meeting and talking with her for the past six weeks; at this rate, I'd have to say that you have an obsession bordering on insane."

"Who's got an obsession bordering on insane?"

Fujima whirled around, and beamed. "Ciel-san!"

Ciel – for it was indeed she – giggled at his obvious surprise. "How many times am I going to say it?! NO MORE HONORIFICS! And I'd hoped that after a month and a half we'd be close enough that there'd be no need for them!"

Fujima blushed, and nodded, remembering that Ciel had told him that midway through their regular meetings.

In the meantime, Hanagata grinned, and approached Ciel. "Alright Ciel, what are YOU doing here?"

The girl shrugged, smiling. "I was planning on going to the bookstore. I wanted to buy a copy of Madeleine L'Engle's  book, 'Dragons in the Waters'."

Almost immediately Hanagata and Ciel walked off towards the bookstore, leaving a very irritated Fujima to catch up to them.

Fujima was very annoyed. He bit his lower lip to hold back a sarcastic remark when Hanagata opened his mouth to talk. _Damn you, Hanagata Toru! _His "best friend" practically monopolized Ciel. Though Ciel spoke to the both of them, Hanagata always gave a response that got Ciel's attention.

It was nearly lunchtime by the time the three of them finished shopping at the bookstore. Ciel checked her watch, and smiled. "Let's go grab a bite, shall we? I know this neat little café on the second floor. The food's good but pretty reasonable when it comes to prices."

Fujima quite literally jumped at the chance. He grinned broadly, and said, "Great idea, Ciel! C'mon, it'll be my treat!"

Hanagata shook his head. "Give it up, Kenji. I know you're strapped on cash. I'LL do the treating."

Fujima did everything he could to prevent himself from strangling Hanagata right there and then. _I was the one who offered to take Ciel out, I offered to do the treating, but NOOOO, HE had to go around and say that HE would treat her out! _

Ciel turned to him then, waving him over. "Aren't you coming, Kenji?"

Fujima followed after them, but stayed back by a couple of steps. From his vantage point, Ciel and Hanagata looked like a couple that was going steady. Which wasn't true; they were only friends, nothing more, nothing less. _Unless there's something here that I don't know about and Hanagata's got a hidden agenda._

They reached the café, and they got a table in a quiet little nook near the windows. Ciel and Hanagata were still chatting with each other, though Ciel constantly glanced at him and attempted to include him the conversation.

Fujima sighed irritably. _Three's a crowd, as foreigners say, especially if it's two boys and one girl. _He grinned at Ciel, pointedly ignoring Hanagata. "Excuse me, but I'll leave you for a minute. I need to go pick up a few photos I had developed."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay and order first?" Ciel asked.

Fujima shook his head. "Nah, I'll be fine. You be the one to order for me; the French have good taste in food, ne? I trust you won't feed me poison." With a wave of his hand, he left the café.

He huffed to himself as he walked to the photo shop. Though the part about picking up some pictures was indeed true, he also went out to blow off some steam. _Why am I so mad anyway, _he raged at himself. _It's not like Ciel and I are going out together or anything – wait, we ARE – but only as friends! She's only my friend…isn't she?_

His thoughts drifted to Hanagata. _Why is it that whenever I see him with Ciel, it makes me want to kill him? If he and Ciel end up together, it shouldn't affect me, should it? I should be happy for them, actually. Ciel does deserve to have a boyfriend. But does Hanagata deserve to have someone like her?_

He groaned. _What am I thinking?! WHY am I thinking this way?!?!?! Am I jealous? _When a sharp twinge hit his heart, he knew immediately how he felt.

He was now inside the café, and walking towards their table. But then, something about the way his two friends sat told him something was going on. He held back, and listened.

Hanagata leaned forward slightly. "Ciel, what do you think of Kenji?"

Ciel blinked. "Kenji? In what sense?"

"Uh, whatever…"

"Well, he's nice and very smart, and rather cute, now that I think about it, but then again, so are you."

"What do you think of me?"

"Toru, why are you asking me this?"

"I just want – need – to know. I mean, I know we've been friends for quite a while, but I could never really figure out what you thought of me. So please Ciel, tell me. And be brutally honest, if you have to."

"Okay…uh, Toru, you're really nice, and you've actually got something between the ears, if you catch my drift. I hold you in pretty high esteem, actually, but Kenji's a little higher on my list. All in all, you're a pretty good friend."

"Is that all I am to you? A friend?"

"Why? What else is there? Okay, you and Kenji are two of my best friends, and are the first guys to have ever gotten to that status. Now, you can tell me anything you want about me. I'd like to have Kenji do this later, but since he's not here, you can go first."

Fujima noticed that Hanagata took a deep breath, as if he was going to say something that would determine his fate. After an agonizingly long moment, Hanagata said, "Ciel, you're an awfully nice girl, nicer than any other girl I've ever met. You're beautiful, intelligent, and have a kind heart. I don't think I've ever met a girl like you, and I doubt if I ever will." He coughed a little, then added, "Ciel, I…" He stopped.

"Yes?" Ciel coaxed.

Hanagata took a deep breath, and said, "Ciel, I like you a lot, more than just as a friend. And I was wondering – no, HOPING – that you would consider going steady with me."

~       ~       ~

"Oi Fujima!"

Fujima prickled slightly when Hanagata poked him in the ribs to get his attention. "Leave me alone Hanagata. There's nothing you can do to help me." _Since YOU'RE the root of the problem, Toru._

But Hanagata wouldn't let it be. "Please Kenji, at least TELL me what's wrong! I might not be able to help, but I'd like to know what's on your mind."

"You REALLY want to know?!" Fujima exploded, all his pent-up emotions finally getting a chance to show. "You really want to know WHAT my problem is?! It's YOU, Hanagata Toru!!!!"

Hanagata blinked; stunned by this sudden display of rage from the person he least expected it to come from. "Me?"

"Yes you!" Fujima yelled back. "You don't think I don't know about you're asking Ciel if you could date her, eh? Well I do! When were you going to tell me, huh?!"

"I-" Suddenly Hanagata's eyes narrowed, and his lips froze in a grim straight line. "Oh, I get it. You like Ciel too."

Fujima snorted. "GREAT observation, Hanagata. If you didn't notice that till now, then I don't know if you're really going blind or just plain stupid! Maybe you need to change your glasses, or have your brain for a tumor!"

"Stupid?! ME, STUPID?!?!" Hanagata let out a cold, mirthless laugh. "I'm neither blind nor stupid, Fujima. I knew all along that you liked Ciel, but being the cowardly yellow-bellied slug that you are, you didn't approach her about it!!! That's your problem, Fujima Kenji! Ever wondered why you could never land yourself a girlfriend?! It's because you're too damned SCARED!!!!" He smirked then. "And besides, what makes you think she deserves a guy like you? She's much too good for you!"

"What makes you think YOU'RE good enough for her?!" Fujima clenched his hands into fists. He knew where this was going, and he was ready for it. Hanagata strode towards him, ready to fight.

The door to the gym suddenly slammed before any of them could land a punch, making the both of them stop in their tracks. Fujima looked towards the door, and asked, "Who was that?"

It was Ito who answered. "It was that girl, Fujima-san. The girl with black hair and purple eyes."

*        *        *

Ciel got into her car, forcing her tears back and trying to turn the ignition in spite of her trembling fingers. By some miracle, she managed to start up the engine, and get out of Shoyo.

_Am I the cause…of everything, _she asked herself as she sped down the highway. She had heard and seen the entire fight between Hanagata and Fujima, and she knew it was SHE they were fighting over.

She swallowed hard. _I don't want to be the cause of their friendship falling apart! _She sighed. _A little distance…yeah, that's what I should do. A little distance will be good for all of us._


	12. Chapter Eleven: I Like, I Like Not

Chapter Eleven: I Like, I Like Not 

Kogure's eyes widened slightly from behind his glasses. "Nani? Are you sure of this, Erin-san?"

Erin groaned. "Please Kogure, no honorifics. And yes, I'm sure of it. Ciel wouldn't think of lying, not to us girls, at least." _Jeez Kogure, why is it that you guys have to be so thickheaded?! _

Kogure was silent for a long while. "I don't understand it, though. Why would Ciel-san blame herself for everything?"

"You don't know Ciel the way we do," Erin said with a sigh. She tilted her head back, and looked at the sky above her head. "For as long back as I can remember, Ciel has always been like that. She puts the blame on herself, even if it's the fault of other people." She grinned, sliding a glance at her bespectacled companion. "In fact, you act a little like her."

Kogure started, and blushed, turning his face away. "Me? Why do you say so?"

"Oh, you know, you're always putting yourself down and all that. You give the credit to others, while you blame yourself for other people's mistakes." Erin nudged him in the ribs. "You should have a little more confidence in yourself, y'know? Just don't get an inflated ego, like Hanamichi."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Kogure said with a chuckle. "I feel that if I start to believe in myself, I'll become overconfident."

"But if you've got too LITTLE confidence, then you'll never reach your full potential. And believe me, you've got LOTS of potential," Erin argued.

Kogure laughed outright, when she said that, but it was only at the fact that Erin had cleverly managed to get the last word in their argument. "Hai, I suppose you're right."

Erin smiled at him, amused. "That's what I really admire in you, Kogure. You're always so happy. I don't know how you manage to keep it up." She frowned, thinking about her father and sisters. "It's like you've got the best in life."

Kogure's face turned serious then. "Your father and sisters…does it still hurt? Losing them, I mean?"

Erin sighed. _I don't really want to talk about it, but what the hell? _"It does, and I guess the hurt will never go away. I'll always be hurting inside, but I'll learn to live with it. That's all I can do."

"You'll be alright," Kogure told her, patting her on the shoulder. "You're a strong girl, you'll live through it."

"Yeah, I guess I will." Erin smiled up at him then, looping her arm loosely through his. "I remember your email telling me that the living can only go on living to repay the departed, because by living we fulfill their wishes. I suppose that's the least I can do for Daddy, Megan and Claire." She nudged him lightly again in the ribs. "Thank you, Kogure."

"Thank you? For what?"

"For being there when I needed a friend. For being my shoulder to cry on when Daddy and my sisters died. For being so nice even if I'm a total stranger…and for the other, little things you've done for me. Thanks, Kogure. Thank you for everything."

Kogure smiled, and patted her hand gently. "You're welcome, Erin."  
  


*        *        *

Kogure was walking on Cloud Nine as he made his way back to his house. He was returning after a day out with Erin, showing her around Kanagawa and taking her to the sights.

When he and Erin had first "met" so many days ago, he had been slightly overwhelmed by her. Though he had known her only through the letters they exchanged, he hadn't expected that she'd look so beautiful. Not that it'd make any difference if she wasn't pretty, but the fact that she WAS added a whole new spin to their relationship.

She was everything he wanted in a girl: smart, witty, and kind. The fact that she was rich and beautiful was just a bonus.

He wasn't going to deny that he liked her as more than a friend. _I wonder what the others would say if they found out? _He chuckled at the thought. He could see Akagi's gorilla-like face rearrange itself into one of surprise; Mitsui would miss a shot; Hanamichi would tease him endlessly; Ayako would squeal happily; Miyagi would warn him about getting dumped; and Rukawa…would say nothing.

_But it wouldn't really matter to me, _Kogure mused. As he walked through the gate of his home, he began to think of ways he could tell Erin he liked her.

*        *        *

Miyagi waited a little impatiently for the doors to open. He sighed as he scuffed his foot along the pavement. _What is taking her so long?_

He was waiting for Erin to leave Anzai-sensei's office, where she was chatting up to the coach of Shohoku.

He smiled as his mind drifted back to the day he first met Erin and her other friends. He had been a little shocked, to say the least. He had never dealt with girls like them before, and it was quite an experience playing against them. Though he hadn't gotten a chance yet to play against Erin, he knew that she was good. All her other friends were good, so she had to be, too.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Anzai!"

Miyagi perked up, and ran a hand through is unruly hair in preparation. He waited until Erin had walked out the door, before approaching her, a big smile on his face. "Konnichiwa, Erin-chan!"

Erin turned to him, blinked, and then smiled. "Oh hi Riyota! What are you still doing here? I thought you went home after practice."

Miyagi smiled ruefully. "Well, ah, I noticed that you didn't leave with the others, so I decided to wait for you."

"There's no need to do that," Erin replied. She looked at him analytically, then asked, "Did someone put you up to this? Like Ciel or Jesse, maybe?"

"Nope. No one put me up to this but myself," Miyagi answered. He scuffed the toe of his shoe on the ground again, then asked, "Uh, Erin-chan, would you – I mean, could you…go out on a date with me?" The last words came out as a very hushed whisper.

Erin's eyebrow went up. "A date?"

"Or just a day out," Miyagi amended hastily. "I mean, I think you're a very nice girl and all, and I'd really like to get to know you better." He looked up at her, waiting for her answer while he twiddled his thumbs nervously. _Please say yes, please say yes…_

Much to his relief and utter joy, Erin smiled at him. "Okay, sure, why not. Where do we meet, and what time?"

Miyagi felt that he could have died of utter happiness right there and then. _At last, a girl hasn't turned me down! _He felt like screaming and jumping up and down, but he knew he had to set everything up first. Hastily, he replied, "Um, how about nine o' clock at the mall this Saturday? We could go see a movie or something."

Erin grinned. "Deal." She checked her watch then, and said, "Sorry to cut this short Riyota, but I really have to go. It's getting late." She waved her hand at him in farewell as she walked out the gym, and disappeared from his sight. 

When he was certain she was out of earshot, Miyagi let out a loud whoop of joy, pumping his fist into the air out of sheer happiness. _At last! I manage to get myself a date! _He hummed a song to himself as he walked out of the gym, heading for home. _And maybe this time, this date will end up becoming something more…_

*        *        *

Kogure looked at the phone in his living room, his thoughts wandering. _To call or not to call, that is the question,_ he thought, rephrasing one of the most famous lines that Shakespeare ever wrote. He had been debating with himself whether he should call Erin up or not, and ask why when he called that morning CJ told him Erin wasn't home.

He didn't have to wait for long. Suddenly, the phone rang with a harsh, shrill tone, and Kogure all but leaped on it in his excitement. He picked it up, and said, "Hello?"

"Good evening, may I speak to Kogure please?"

Kogure smiled. He'd know that voice anywhere. "Erin! This is Kogure speaking."

"Kogure! Oh God, I have got something REALLY exciting to tell you." A dramatic pause for effect, then Erin said, "I think I've found a guy I like."

A chill ran up and down Kogure's spine. _What could it mean? Could it be someone else? Or maybe, just maybe…_ He swallowed, attempting to make his voice sound as casual as possible. "Really? That's great! Who's the lucky guy?"

Erin laughed. "Try to guess!"

"That's not fair, Erin! You haven't given me any clues!"

"Okay, okay! He's a member of Shohoku."

The chill came back again, and this time, Kogure's heart pounded double-time. His mind spun as he thought of all the possibilities. But first, he thought he should tease her. "Oh, I think I know! Akagi?"

A squeal of disgust from the other end of the line. "KOGURE!!! I don't mean to offend or anything, as Takenori's really nice and all, but seriously, he isn't my type! You should know that by now!"

"Okay…um, Rukawa?"

"The walking block of ice? Excuse me, but I could date a glacier and get the same effect."

"Hanamichi?"

"THAT redhead?!?! No thanks, Kogure, I like guys who don't go around head-bashing other males and who don't have an ego problem as big as his."

"Mitsui?"

"Good-looking, but not really my type. And besides, if Aleine found out I was going out with him, she'd kick his ass all the way from here to Manhattan."

Now Kogure's heart was racing at triple time, and the chill came rushing through him faster than before. _Only two names left,_ he told himself. _It couldn't be Miyagi; she'd probably say, "Miyagi? Didn't you tell me he was going out with Ayako or something?" But still, it wouldn't hurt to be sure…_ "Miyagi then?"

Silence on the other end of the line, and then Erin uttered a soft, fluttery-sounding sigh, something that sounded EXACTLY like a lovesick girl. "About time you guessed, Kogure. And, yes, it IS Miyagi Riyota."

Kogure felt his heart crash down from his chest to the pit of his stomach, and then rise again to stick in his throat like a massive lump. "Miyagi Riyota?" he asked, barely able to steady his voice so that it didn't squeak.

"Uh huh. CJ told me you called this morning, and she told you I was out. I was with Riyota that time. We just went for a day out, bonding and stuff. And then, the moment I stepped into the house, it suddenly hit me. I LIKE him, Kogure. I really, really like him," Erin said seriously.

"Why didn't you tell me you were going out with him?" Kogure asked, unable to conceal the hurt in his voice any longer. _Is she serious?! Oh gods, why did it HAVE to be Riyota?! _The point guard with a slight altitude problem was one of his closest friends on the team, next to Mitsui and Akagi. _How am I going to face him now? _

Erin sighed then. "Kogure, I'm sorry if I didn't tell you where I was going. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything. And besides, even if Riyota MIGHT end up becoming my boyfriend, you'll still me by BEST friend. You see the difference there?"

"Hai," Kogure answered dismally. "Just...take care, okay Erin? I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

She laughed cheerfully, and the sound went straight like an arrow into his heart. "Sure, sure. And anyways, you will be there to protect me, won't you?"

Kogure sighed. "Hai, always."  

"Thanks. See you tomorrow. Bye." The phone line went dead with a click.

Kogure put the handset down ,and stared at it for a long, long time. Finally, he managed to drag himself off the couch, plod up the stairs to his room, and remove his glasses before flopping down on his bed. Tears threatened to fall, stinging at the corners of his eyes. He swallowed forcefully against the lump in his throat as he dashed the tears away with a quick swipe of his hand. _This can't be happening, this can't be happening, _his mind chanted, but another, equally strong voice was saying, _it is, it is, it is…_

With a soft moan of frustration, irritation, and annoyance, he rolled over onto his stomach, and hid his face in his pillows. _Heartbreak has to be the HARDEST thing to deal with…especially if the girl likes one of your friends. _He recalled what Erin told him the other day, about Fujima Kenji and Hanagata Toru of Shoyo arguing over Ciel. He now knew what it felt like to be torn between one's friend  and the girl one likes. 

But he wasn't like Hanagata or Fujima. He wasn't about to engage in a word war or fistfight with Miyagi. No, he had to keep up his "peacemaker" reputation, as it was one of the things Erin really liked about him. _But I wish I hadn't earned such a reputation. Then maybe it wouldn't be so hard to confront Miyagi. _But it stood, and he knew Erin well enough to know that she would never forgive him if he fought with Miyagi. _No, best to lie low and let everything run its course…_

However, he remembered Erin's words to him, that he should stand up more for what he wanted, and not let everyone trample on him all the time. He clenched his fist, a new determination sweeping over him, much stronger than the determination that overcame him when he first joined the Basketball Club of Shohoku. He would never fight outright, but he would be a challenge that Miyagi would have to overcome. _If he wants Erin, then he's going to have to get past me first. _


	13. Chapter Twelve: Facing Your Problems is ...

Chapter Twelve: Facing Your Problems is Hard to Do 

Ciel's eyes glinted curiously as she got into her Lamborghini. "With whom are we going to play today, Jesse? I don't remember you scheduling any games today."

Jesse sighed, and shot a glance at Erin and Melina. The two girls shook their heads imperceptibly. _Nope, not the right time. _She turned back to Ciel, and grinned. "It's a surprise for you this time. I just need you to come along like always. I haven't exactly decided on the playing team yet, so I want everyone tagging along." She sat down on the passenger's side of the car, while Ciel got into the driver's seat. 

"Are you sure?" Ciel asked warily as she started up the car. 

"Sure I'm sure! Was there ever a time I let you down before?" Jesse asked lightly, trying to cover up the fact that she was leaving out some very important details. _If she knew whom we were playing against, she'd NEVER come along. _She grinned at her best friend. "And besides, you've locked yourself up in your room and brooded there for FAR too long. You need a bit of fresh air, girl! A little bit of sunlight! It'll bring some color back to your cheeks!"

Ciel laughed as they pulled out of the garage, and sped down the highway, following Melina's BMW. "Okay, I understand! This game is a cheer-up-Ciel mission, right? Come on, don't deny it!"

"Yeah, you're right on the mark, Ciel!" Jesse replied as they whizzed down the streets, the Lamborghini's engine purring like a kitten. _I only hope that she doesn't figure out where we're going exactly until she can't back out anymore…_

However, her hopes were dashed when they rounded the corner into the street where their destination stood. Ciel took one look, and immediately turned to the side of the road, parking her car. She turned to Jesse, and demanded, "Jesse, what are we doing here?!"

Jesse noticed that Ciel was about ready to bolt, so she put a hand on her friend's shoulder, and said, in her most serious tone, "Ciel, you can't run away from this forever. You know that. Unless you do something and face up to the problem, you're never going to get anywhere." She sighed. "I know that this hurts you; why else would you lock yourself up in your room and brood over it? But don't you see that you're just going to hurt them AND yourself more if you do that? Come on Ciel, you're the strongest girl I know. I don't really know what troubles you had to face before we met each other, but I can tell you now that running away isn't going to solve anything. Please Ciel, this is for your own good…"

Ciel stared at her for a long while, her purple eyes suddenly seeming to be hazy, like a veil had been dropped over them. Jesse had never seen Ciel like that before, and it probably meant that this whole affair had stirred up memories or feelings that Ciel had attempted to control or keep hidden away from the surface. _But if that's the case, what could they be? _

At long last, Ciel sighed, and turned to the steering wheel, starting the engine up again. "I know you're right, Jesse," she murmured. "I'm not afraid to choose between the two of them; given a chance, I'd declare it to the whole wide world. But…things are a lot more complicated than that. No, I can't choose between the two of them. If I choose, I'll lose the both of them. If I love…it will be the end." 

Jesse stared at her friend, puzzled as hell by what Ciel said. _What in the world is she talking about? _But there was not much time left for contemplation. Ciel had already driven the car into the parking lot of Shoyo High School, and she had to condition herself mentally for the upcoming game. She slid a sideways glance at Ciel, and noticed that the poor girl had withdrawn mentally. _I hope that what I'm doing will be good for her…_

*        *        *

CJ looked at Ciel, and felt very bad for her friend. _Something's wrong with her…I wonder what it could be…_

When she had told Melina that she was more mysterious than Ciel and Aleine, it was one of those things that she used to tease her friend. After all, when it came to mystery, none were better at it than Melina, Ciel and Aleine. While she, Jesse and Erin were more of the what-you-see-is-what-you-get types, the three others were…well, different. 

Though Melina was often the happy-go-lucky type of girl and managed to get along with almost anyone, there were times when she would space out and not come back to reality for a long while. As Erin termed it, "The lights are on but no one's home". Also, she had a tendency to waking up screaming in the middle of the night because of some nightmare or other. And there was also Melina's strange mistrust of men. It hadn't escaped CJ's observation that although Melina easily made friends with guys, when they started to get TOO close to her (otherwise known as having ROMANTIC intentions), she'd suddenly jump away from them and insist that she never see them again. That was how she managed to leave 58 broken hearts in her wake AND earn the title of "Black Widow", because, like her arachnid counterpart, she was always "killing off" her suitors.

Ciel was more or less the same. CJ was certain that beneath her cool and calm exterior was a tortured and broken soul. She could see it all too clearly in Ciel's eyes sometimes, but there were also times when they were clouded and full of…something that CJ couldn't put her finger on. Though all of them loved her, Ciel wasn't the type to get too close to anyone. She rarely shared anything about herself, being more content to listen to others and share in their pain than discuss her own problems.

But Aleine was an entirely different cup of tea altogether. Though they had managed to break through her cold exterior and had come to know her ways and habits, there were still hidden layers that were yet to be unmasked, and CJ didn't know what they had to do to get Aleine to show them who she really was. It seemed to her that Aleine wore a multitude of masks, and around that she had also built high walls and were quite impenetrable except to the few who knew her. She was the epitome of mystery, and not even they had managed to unravel her yet.

SWISH!!!

CJ looked up, and watched as Ciel dropped to the floor on her feet right after scoring two points with her lay-up. She smiled, and got to her feet, yelling at her teammates as they ran past. "Come on girls, you can do it! Nothing to them! Go!"

Melina laughed from where she was guarding one of the players of Shoyo, blocking him with her body. "Speak for yourself! How's about you come down here and try playing these guys for yourself?!"

"I decline the offer, Mel, but thanks anyway!" CJ called teasingly, watching as Erin suddenly made off with the ball, and ran over to the other end of the court. Unfortunately, it seems that Hanagata was quick in getting there, and he blocked her way. Erin swiftly passed the ball to Aleine, who jumped up and shot it for a three-pointer.

As her friends dashed back to the other side to play defense, her eye almost unconsciously fell on Ciel. She bit her lip. _Oh Ciel…_

*        *        *

Fujima stared intently at Ciel as she dribbled the ball, attempting to watch her every move. He winced when he saw that she never met his gaze, and whenever they made contact as a result of the playing, he could see her flinch quite visibly. _Ciel…_

He knew for sure that she had overheard everything that they had argued about a few days ago, and it made him feel quite guilty that she had to hear all of it. The last thing he wanted to do was make her think less of him because of that argument with Hanagata.

But in the meantime, they had other things to think about. Like the way these girls were beating them down because Hanagata wouldn't pass him the ball, even if he were open. And the girls were taking advantage of it. They had seen that weakness immediately, and started hammering it mercilessly. Though he had hoped that at least Ciel would go easy on them, she didn't. In fact, she was the most unrelenting on their team.

It hurt, seeing her like this. It really hurt. He felt that he was responsible for the way she was acting at that moment. _I wish I hadn't started it._

_And then what? Let Hanagata have his way, _his snottier side demanded.

Fujima mentally shook his head. _No, I wouldn't let him have his way! Not ever! But I shouldn't have confronted him in front of everyone…especially in front of her…_

_It was for the best, _his snotty side whispered. _That way everyone would know who has the REAL right to claim her._

_But she isn't an object that I should "claim"! _Fujima raged at himself. _She's a living, breathing person with feelings, and I KNOW that I hurt them! Gods, of all the people to hurt, it had to be my "best friend" and the girl I like. What's she going to think of me now?!_

Suddenly, the girl named Jesse walked to the middle of the court, waving her arms to get their attention. "Hold it, hold it, HOLD IT!" 

Fujima looked up at her, curious as to why she suddenly spoke up the way she did. _What could be wrong? _

"This game isn't going anywhere," Jesse said at last. She eyed the Shoyo players. "I don't know what's going on, but something's the matter. This isn't the way you played against Shohoku. Something's wrong here, and it sure as hell ain't depression from losing to Shohoku." She gave a pointed glance at Hanagata, who lowered his eyes almost immediately, then at Fujima. He met her gaze for as long as he could, but then lowered his eyes to the floor.

He didn't see the smirk on Jesse's face. "Right. Now, how's about we make you a deal? We'll stop this game, and have a new one some other time. That way, we can play fair and square. How does that sound?"

Fujima blinked. _What? They want to have another game at another time? Why would they want that when they're already in the lead? _But after a moment of thought, he realized almost instantly why Jesse would suggest that. _She saw right through Hanagata and me. _He cleared his throat, trying to sound authoritative. "Alright, I accept your suggestion. Just come by when you think it would be a good time to play against us again."

Jesse smiled. "Great! Now then," here she turned to her friends, "let's get on out of here." She glanced at the other Shoyo players, pointedly not looking at Hanagata and Fujima. "Hey, you guys want to come with us? We're going out for some ice cream. Our treat!"

That was more than enough incentive for the other Shoyo players. In moments the gym was empty, save for Fujima, Hanagata, and, in a little corner of the gym, Ciel.

Fujima looked at her with a wide-eyed gaze. _Why did she stay here? I thought that she'd be the first to bolt out of here when her friends suggested they go out for ice cream._ She stood up then, and flashed them a sort of half-smile. "I'm going out to get some ice cream too. You want me to get you some?"

*        *        *

Ciel looked at the two players who stood just a few meters away from her, staring at her with strange gazes in their eyes. She sighed. _Why does it have to be so hard for me to face up to this? I should just walk up to them, tell them what I really feel, and leave it at that. _

She sighed, and turned around, no longer waiting for their answer. "I'll be back in a while…"

At that precise moment, she felt a hand close around her wrist, tugging her gently back. _What? _She turned around, and noticed Hanagata staring at her, his fingers wrapped around her wrist. She stared back at him. "What is it?"

"We need to talk," Hanagata said, and there was remorse in his voice. 

Ciel nodded wordlessly, and let Hanagata lead her to the nearest bench. She sat down, and looked at the two players who stood in front of her. They didn't say anything for a while, but the silence was broken when Hanagata said, "Ciel, we'd like to…apologize. We know you saw us that day, and we know it wasn't exactly a nice scene, and, well…" Here he trailed off, unable to think of anything more to say. Fujima simply stood there, silent.

"I thank you for apologizing," Ciel said quietly, "but I think I'm the one who has to apologize here. The way I see it, you two have been friends for much longer than I've been yours. Like they say in the States, 'Three's a crowd'; and I don't want to be the third party that ruins everything. It really hurts to see that I'd be the reason that your friendship would be destroyed. If it will help any, I'll try to keep a little distance from you two from now on."

Fujima shook his head vigorously. "No Ciel, there's no need to do that! You're still our friend in spite of what's happened, and believe me, we wouldn't like it if you stayed away from us."

Ciel smiled up at Fujima, noting the anxiety in his dark blue eyes. _He's always been like that. It's such a pity that there aren't a lot like him in the world. God only knows that this world would be a better place with more like him. _"Okay then, I won't stay away from you. But remember this: you two are back to Square One when it comes to me. I'd like to work our friendship from scratch, and maybe it will be better than before." She stood up then, and managed to put on a smile. "So then, how about that ice cream?"

When the two boys nodded, she turned around, and headed out of the gym in search of her friends.

*        *        *

Hanagata sighed when Ciel had disappeared behind the door. _That went smoothly enough. _He glanced at Fujima, and grinned. "So I can safely say that this little spat is over?"

Fujima smiled back at him. "I guess so." But then, he sighed. "Back to Square One…looks like it's going to be a little harder from now on."

"You can say that again," Hanagata agreed. _He's right. Ciel's going to be a little more wary of us from now on. She's going to try to strike a balance between the two of us so that we don't argue about her anymore. _"Fujima, I still like her, even after all she said."

His best friend nodded. "Hai. And I feel the same way." Fujima glanced at him, and held out his hand. "If you're not going to change your mind, then so be it. Let HER make the decision. I won't interfere, and you won't interfere. We'll play fair. And may the best man win, ne?"

Hanagata grinned, and shook Fujima's hand. "Hai. May the best man win."


	14. Chapter Thirteen: Down by the Beach

Chapter Thirteen: Down by the Beach 

Melina sighed pleasantly as she whizzed down the completely empty highway, glad that she could go at a slightly higher speed than what was allowed, and watch the sunset at the same time. After their cancelled game with Shoyo and that ice cream spree, she and her friends had each gone their separate ways. Jesse and Ciel took the fastest way home, while CJ and Erin planned to head to the mall. She had no idea where Aleine was headed, but she knew as much that she wasn't headed home yet. And as for herself, she was going home, but she wanted to take the longer and more scenic route by taking the road that wound along the coastline of Kanagawa.

Her mind drifted back to the game they had earlier. When they started out, Melina was quite surprised to find out that Shoyo was pretty easy to play against. They didn't perform the way they did in their game against Shohoku. This irritated her slightly, as she had been expecting a more challenging game than when they played against Shohoku and Ryonan. After all, they WERE the second-best in the prefecture, weren't they?

But then Jesse saw right through them. They were obviously having internal conflicts, mostly concerning Hanagata Toru and Fujima Kenji, who, unfortunately, were the two pillars of the Shoyo Team. And Melina knew that their problem concerned that argument they had about Ciel.

_It must have been tough for Ciel, trying to put an end to the entire thing, _Melina mused. It had been her idea to force Ciel to play during the game against Shoyo, in effect forcing her to face up to the problem at hand. And though it didn't work out the way she thought it would, it DID put an end to the argument. That alone was good enough.

She was also pleased with the way Ciel put it. _Back to Square One…yeah, that's a good idea, especially if she wants to keep their friendship. And I'm sure that she does, especially Kenji's. _She knew that her friend had a special fondness for the brown-haired, blue-eyed Shoyo player, though how she could give preference to a guy she nearly killed was beyond Melina's comprehension. She giggled. _It's like one of those comedy romances in the movies or on TV. Girl nearly kills Guy, they hate each other's guts for a while, and then they end up falling all over each other…_

She sighed then. _If only finding romance were THAT easy. _Melina had had her own fair share of suitors, but more often than not, she always found reasons to "kill them off", as Aleine put it. Sometimes they were too snobby; sometimes they were too boring; sometimes they were too fresh with her. The latter kinds were the ones she hated the most, and she tried to avoid them like the plague. As luck would have it though, those were the ones who often ended up knocking on her door. And when such people came to call, she often resorted to desperate measures, like calling the guards up and having them take the persistent suitor away.

But she realized, with a frown, that it wasn't the only reason why  she kept shying away from guys. She had a good deal of suitors who were actually pretty decent: smart, kind, and had a sense of respect and dignity. No, there was that "other" reason, the one connected to the "incident"…

She shook her head. _Mel, now's not the time to remember that! Pull yourself together! You should just forget about it and leave it at that! _But how could she NOT forget it, particularly since she felt herself starting to fall all over again with a certain Sendoh Akira…

When she first met Sendoh, Melina thought that she had to keep her distance from him. He exuded that cool, suave attitude that would make most girls swoon, but in her case, only made her more wary of him. But she started lowering her defenses when she got to know him more, and found that other side of him, the jolly, happy-go-lucky part that seemed to shout to the whole wide world, "I don't give a damn!" And she liked it. Never had she met anyone who was so carefree, someone who could always find a reason to smile and to laugh. Someone who could make anyone feel special, even with just a smile or a kind word. And she could see why his teammates liked him so much; he always made sure that he praised them for every little thing they did, and tried to comfort and encourage them when they were down.

_The fact that I like him is kinda scary, though, _Melina thought. Never in the whole three years since the "incident" had she come this close to falling in love all over again.

_Watch yourself Mel, _her mind told her. _If you're not careful you're going to lose it again._

_Relax, Mel,_ her heart whispered. _It's about time you found another guy to love you, and Sendoh seems like the best guy for the job! He's kind, witty, and it helps that he's rather cute to boot. That smile of his helps a lot there, don't you think? _

_Yeah, but remember, those were the same exact reasons you fell for Nicholas, and look what happened to you, _her mind retorted.

Melina sighed. _What am I going to do?_

At that moment, she noticed a familiar person sitting on the pier, a fishing rod in his hand. She smiled when she noticed the hard-to-miss spiked hair. _Well whaddya know! Speak of the devil himself! _She parked her car near the pier, but didn't make a move to get out. She simply watched him from a distance, observing him. He was sitting on the large metal bolt that was used to tie boats to the pier, and his fishing line dangled from the rod into the surf that lapped at the pier. She couldn't tell if he had caught any yet, but then again, he was probably just holding a fishing rod to act as a cover while he lost himself in thought. 

Melina grinned when she thought of that possibility. _God only knows how many times I've used my riding as a cover-up story so I can ponder the imponderable. _

Just then, however, the person she had been observing turned around, and looked straight at her. Sendoh smiled, and laid his rod down on the concrete beside him. He stood up, and approached her, his blue eyes twinkling and that infamous lopsided grin of his plastered all over his face. "Konnichiwa, Melina-chan."

Melina smiled up at him. "Hi Sendoh."

*        *        *

Sendoh smiled down at the shorthaired girl who sat behind the wheel of the silver BMW, surprised to even SEE her there. _I never expected that she would come by this way. _

Taoka-sensei had let them off early that day, though for what reasons Sendoh never knew or found out. But still, he seized the opportunity, as they say, and took off before Taoka-sensei could change his mind. After a quick walk home to pick up his fishing rod and some bait, he took a long, leisurely stroll towards the little pier that stood not that far from his home, and once he got there, he sat down on his favorite spot, let down his line into the water, and waited. While he waited, he let his thoughts drift where they would, and after several minutes (or hours), he realized that most of them centered on Melina.

_And how couldn't they, _he thought amusedly. From the moment he had seen her, she had held his imagination, almost out of his will. He found himself thinking about her more often that he should, and though it annoyed him that he should always lose his focus, it provided an attractive alternative to the boring lectures his teachers forced onto him during class. 

But there were some things that he couldn't understand about her. Like why did she flinch when he touched her after their game? That particular incident stuck in his head, and was the main focus of his thoughts from the day it happened. A lot of possibilities entered his mind, each worse than the first, until it came to the point that he didn't want to think about it anymore.

He smiled down at her. "What are you doing here, Melina-chan?"

"Oh, I just decided to take the more scenic route home," Melina answered with a shrug and a smile. "We just came from Shoyo, but Jesse suddenly cut our game with them."

"So you played against Shoyo." Sendoh looked down at her, and then suddenly had an idea. "Mel-chan, why don't you get out of the car? You're not in a hurry to get home, are you?"

Melina shook her head. "No. Why?"

"Why don't you stay here and chat with me a while. I've got a lot of time on my hands right now, and I'm getting pretty bored. Let's watch the sunset." As he spoke, Sendoh pulled the door opened, and held his hand out to her in invitation.

There was hesitation in Melina's voice. "Where are we going to sit?"

He pointed to where he had been sitting a moment ago. "Right over there."

"Uh…a little close to the edge, isn't it?"

"That's what's so nice about it. The view is fantastic from there." Sendoh caught her hand in his, and gently pulled her to her feet. _Wow, she didn't pull away from me!_ "Come on!"

Melina shook her head then, and a hint of fear appeared in her eyes. "I don't think we should go so near to the edge…"

Sendoh laughed playfully at her. "What's so wrong with that? I'm not planning to push you in or anything. And besides, you aren't afraid of the water, are you?"

At his words, Melina blushed, and lowered her gaze. "Actually…I am."

That floored him. He stopped his teasing, and looked at Melina with a combination of surprise and curiosity. "Honto?"

"Yeah. I mean, I'm not afraid of water when it's in a shower or a bathtub or a pool – as long as I can see the bottom, I'm fine. But when it comes to lakes and the ocean…that's an entirely different cup of tea."

Curiosity finally winning over his surprise, Sendoh had to ask the inevitable question, "Naze?"

A small smile crossed Melina's face. "It's a pretty weird story, actually. When I was four or five, my family went to a lake up in Canada. My older cousin took me out to the middle of the lake in an inflatable raft. Unfortunately, the wind was pretty strong that day, and the raft turned over. I wasn't wearing a life vest, and I didn't know how to swim, so I nearly drowned. After that, well…let's just say I've stuck closer to land ever since."

"Oh, I see." Sendoh stared at her for a moment longer. _Fears really get embedded in her for a long time. I wonder…did she flinch before because of some fear? If so, what sort of fear is it?_

There was silence for a long while; then Melina smiled, and got back into her car. "Well, looks like it's getting pretty dark already. I got to go home now. Nice seeing you, Sendoh." With that, she started up the engine, and drove off, leaving Sendoh to think about what she had told him.


	15. Chapter Fourteen: A Look at Do'aho and I...

Chapter Fourteen: A Look at Do'aho and Ice Queen's Thoughts 

Aleine drove down the highways away from Shoyo, ignoring all form of speed limits and pedestrian crossings like always. _It's amazing the cops haven't come down on me yet, _she thought with a smirk. _Maybe because they don't want to cross anyone who drives a Ferrari? All the better! That way I can do whatever I feel like doing. This is SO much better than New York._

If there was one thing Aleine despised, it was being forced to conform to the norms and conventions of other people. All throughout her life she had been forced to do what her parents, what her teachers, had wanted her to do, and she was sick and tired of doing everything their way. _If I didn't do anything I might have lost my personality totally. I'd just be a walking brainwashed copy of THEM. _She shuddered. _I DEFINITELY don't want THAT to happen._

Being born in the high and elite circles of what was upper-class New York may have seemed wonderful on the outside, but once you got inside, it wasn't exactly all it was cracked up to be. It was all about images, and money, and who looked younger than whom, and who made more money than whom. There were unspoken rules as to what a girl could and should do, and their choices for their future were limited. The most they were supposed to aspire to were to be the wives of rich corporate magnates or politicians. 

But Aleine didn't want that. She NEVER wanted that. She wanted the freedom to be who she wanted to be, without the constraints that were often put on her and her friends. She knew that the others felt the same way; that's why they went on this trip to Japan in the first place. They wanted to be an entire world away from their parents and the world they had grown up in. They wanted a chance to be who they wanted to be. 

_Yeah, be who we want to be…without having to always look over our backs to see if our parents have caught us, _Aleine thought with a scowl. There was once a time she wasn't the way she was. In fact, she was the exact opposite. She was always smiling, with a tendency to laugh even at the smallest things. She was pleasant and easy to get along with.

But everything eventually fell apart. Her parents were constantly arguing, and at the age of six Aleine found herself trapped in the middle of a messy divorce. It didn't help that it was also a very high-profile breakup, since her father had been a former movie star before he had made it big in real estate, and her mother was a popular model before she got married. 

_But I wasn't alone in having that sort of trouble. _Jesse had been caught up in a situation quite similar to that, but hers had been more along the lines of an international scandal, when her father had been caught cheating with the United States Ambassador to France. As a method of escaping reality – and partly to get her parents' attention – she joined up with a biker gang for three years. Fortunately, she didn't get in trouble for that, and was soon back in the good graces of her family, who, fortunately, hadn't split up.

Aleine hadn't really cared that time when her parents were breaking up. After all, she had other people who cared dearly for her. _Like Damien…and Alex…_ Damien was her older half-brother, her father's son by another woman. Even then, though, Aleine loved him as she would a real brother, and he had been her 'support system' throughout the rest of his life. 

_Until he died, though,_ Aleine thought bitterly. It had been a mystery that had not been solved yet. The police speculated that he had been assassinated, but for what reasons and by whom was not yet figured out. 

But what hurt the most was that he had died right in front of her. They had been walking along Ninth Street, looking for the nearest ice cream shop. It was summer that time, and even the air-conditioning indoors was not enough to cool them off. At Aleine's insistence, the two of them went out to buy some ice cream. When they were a good distance away from the apartment building where they lived, there was a rushing of air, and then Damien jerked forward, slumping onto the pavement, with a bullet hole on his back and running right through to his heart.

Aleine had been totally devastated by the loss of her brother. During that time she blamed herself for what happened, and wouldn't get out of her room. The only one who managed to bring her out of hiding and face the world again was her best friend, Alex.

Aleine's heart gave a painful twinge when she remembered the only guy best friend she ever had in her entire life. They had been friends for quite a while, so when they eventually learned that they were engaged to one another, it didn't seem so bad. _After all, getting married to my best friend didn't seem like such a bad idea…especially when I started to have a crush on him…_

However, it seemed like it just wasn't meant to be. When she was thirteen, Aleine was kidnapped by a drug syndicate, and held for a ransom of twelve billion dollars. Alex somehow found out about it, as well as her location. He went there, and attempted to rescue her. Unfortunately, he got shot just before he could reach her, and died in her lap. 

That was the final blow for Aleine. Though she no longer locked herself up in her room, she locked up her heart. She then slowly put on masks and facades to hide who she really was and to keep away any pain. She adopted a cold and a basically I-don't-give-a-damn attitude so that she wouldn't build any lasting bonds with anyone. Jesse and the others WERE her friends, and she had a bond with them, but it was only because they had almost similar situations, not because they really understood her. 

_And now that do'aho is making it all the worse for me,_ Aleine thought as her eyes narrowed. When she had first seen Mitsui, she couldn't help but be reminded of both Damien and Alex. He had Damien's easygoing nature, and Alex's smile and looks. Seeing all those qualities together in one person only served to hurt Aleine more.

So she did what she often did whenever she wanted people to stay away from her: she lashed out at them. And since Mitsui reminded her of the two most important people in her life, she wanted to make him go the hell away. Thus, she gave him 'special treatment'; meaning, she often treated him like dirt. _Stay away from me, Mitsui Hisashi. You aren't going to get anywhere with me…_

_Or is that really what you want? _Her heart's snide reply made Aleine convulse involuntarily and grip more tightly on the steering wheel. She wanted Mitsui to stay away from her and leave her alone, but the problem was that a part of her didn't want him to do that. The soft, sensitive side of her that she had pinned down and cornered in the farthest reaches of her spirit was calling out to her with a vengeance, begging her to stop shunning Mitsui and learn to get along with him for her own good. _He's exactly what you need now, _it shouted at her. _You've been mourning for Damien and Alex for far too long! And besides, would Alex want to see you so unhappy?! _

Aleine swallowed hard against the lump in her throat, and shook her head. _Jeez Aleine, get a grip! _And with that she continued her driving, not caring where she went or how long she drove.

*        *        *

Mitsui sighed as he wandered up to his room, his ears automatically blocking out the sounds of his parents arguing for the umpteenth time that week. _Just stay the hell away from them when they're like that, Hisashi, _he told himself. _You wouldn't want to get caught in the middle of it. _

If divorce were legal in Japan, he was certain that his parents would have gone that way a long time ago. Theirs was an arranged marriage, and it seemed that neither one was happy with the choice of spouse. For as long as he could remember, his mother and father were at odds with each other, disagreeing about everything, even the smallest things. Somehow, in the midst of all their fighting, they managed to have him, but that was the end of it. He didn't get any other siblings for the rest of his life.

_Not that I mind, though, _he thought as he slid into his room and lay down on the bed. He was used to being alone, since he was an only child. Though his mother cared for him and loved him like any mother would her son, she didn't have a lot of time for him. She was always away somewhere, attending to some corporate meeting or other. His father worked abroad, so he didn't get to see much of him either.

And so it was that Mitsui Hisashi grew up with no siblings, raised by an aunt who never got married, but who loved her nephew all the more so because of that. He didn't grow up into a spoiled brat, fortunately, but his aunt's constant doting didn't do anything nice for his ego. 

But playing basketball managed to deflate it somewhat. He had to learn the value of teamwork, and that victory wasn't the result of only one person's efforts. But when he was named MVP in junior high, his pride shot up to record heights.

Then he hit a hard wall when he got that knee injury. Because of his pride he refused to accept that he was, in fact, stoppable instead of unstoppable, and that only made things worse. It was a downward spiral from there. First coming in late for classes, then skipping them entirely, then not coming to school, and then dropping out for a time…and then returning as leader of a gang. No one recognized him anymore as the MVP player who had joined up with Shohoku. He was just another troublemaker, and a very dangerous one at that. They shunned him, they hated him, and it only hurt him more. 

But he got some sense knocked into him – literally and figuratively speaking – and he was once more back in the team and in their good graces. It felt like getting a second chance at life. _And this time, _he had promised himself, _I won't mess it up._

Still, even if he had these new friends and was back doing what he really loved to do, there was still a little bit of him that felt lonely. And that side of him often kicked into gear whenever he saw couples walking down the street past him on his way home, or when he saw Haruko chatting with Sakuragi. His heart craved for THAT kind of companionship: the affection of a girl. Initially, he just laughed at himself, believing that he was going soft and that it wasn't good, often putting it down in psychological terms as a mother complex, since he didn't exactly have the love of his own mother around him often.

But all his theories got tossed out the window when Erin and the rest of them came. These six girls were WAY different from all the other girls he had encountered. Most of them were like Haruko: soft, prone to giggling, and basically NEEDED someone else in their life to steer their life for them. It wasn't like that with Erin, Jesse, Melina, CJ, Ciel and Aleine. They weren't prone to giggling, they were far from soft, and they sure as hell didn't need anyone to run their lives for them. They did what they wanted, not caring what other people would think of them; as long as it was fun for them, then they'd do it.

Still, Mitsui didn't find himself getting attracted that much to any of them. Oh sure, they were beautiful – it'd be only a blind man that didn't see that – and they were pretty cool where the attitude came in, but that still wasn't enough. He felt that they wouldn't be able to understand him for who he really was.

_Except if we're talking about Aleine… _Mitsui groaned at the thought of the girl whom he had nicknamed "Snow Bitch". _Well that's exactly what she is, _he told himself defensively. _Why she has to pick on ME all the time is beyond me. What did I ever do to her that I deserved to get treated like this?! _

When he had first laid eyes on her that day she sauntered into the gym of Shohoku High, Mitsui knew that there was something completely and utterly different about her. Oh sure, she would stick out a like a sore thumb amongst the throng of girls who studied at Shohoku, but even when she was with her friends, she still stood out. It might have been her ethereal beauty: her long, flowing silver hair, her icy blue eyes, and her soft pale skin…but Mitsui soon realized that it wasn't just her beauty alone that attracted him. He was quite perceptive of the pain of others, and he knew that Aleine carried something really painful and heartbreaking all the time. What it was exactly he didn't know.

_We're kindred spirits, she and I, _he caught himself thinking one day. _We've both had a rough time with life, and I guess that's what is pulling us to each other. As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together…but I wish she didn't have to be so unlikable and unapproachable. _

He sighed, and rolled over in his bed, burying his head in his pillows. _Well, whatever. For the meantime, I'm just going to play her game the way she wants to play it. _


	16. Chapter Fifteen: The Kitsune, His Vixen,...

Chapter Fifteen: The Kitsune, The Vixen and a Little Black Kitten 

Jesse whistled to the wind as she whizzed down the sidewalk on her inline skates, opting to use those instead of her Harley. She had gotten more than a few weird stares from pedestrians and passersby whenever she went out on her bike, and she noticed that the cops were looking at her with feral looks in their eyes, as if they were ready to pounce on her, so just to avoid causing any trouble, she decided to use her skates today.

_So far so good, _she thought with a happy smile on her face. She had managed to help Ciel with her problem, and they were going to have a more proper game with Shoyo in a few days' time. _It can't get better than this._

_No, wait, of course it can, _Jesse thought, grinning when an image of Rukawa Kaede's face slipped into her head. Currently, her dream game would be a one-on-one against Rukawa. A silly smile appeared on her face as she tried to imagine how it would go. _Wow, that would be fun! And I'd sure love to kick his butt one more time…maybe I can organize another game with Shohoku! They seem to have gotten a lot better now, and it'd be fun to play against them and see how much they've improved._

As she skated down the street, she passed by a secluded little park. Through the bushes, she saw a familiar black-haired, pale-skinned figure slumped in a bench, staring at a black kitten sitting near his feet. Charmed, Jesse applied the brakes, and looked at the scene before her with a smile. _Rukawa._

*        *        *

"Hey Kaede. What're you doing all the way out here?"

Rukawa blinked the moment he heard the familiar feminine voice. _Eh? _He looked up, and saw Jessica Drakensburg standing on the sidewalk in front of him, her arms crossed casually in front of her and her lips curved in a smile. Her feet were shod in a pair of inline skates.

She laughed at him then, and skated over to him. "Aren't you going to say hello?"

"Konnichiwa," Rukawa mumbled, but didn't look up at her anymore. He was too busy staring at the kitten.

Jesse must have noticed this, because she immediately took a seat beside him, and bent over, holding her hand out to the kitten in a beckoning gesture. "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty! Come here sweetie!"

The kitten looked at her with a green-eyed gaze, and then after a while, got up from its haunches, walked daintily over to her, and purred while rubbing its head against her hand.

Rukawa stared at Jesse with utter shock and amazement. "What did you do?"

"Let's just say I have a gift when it comes to animals," Jesse replied with a laugh as she petted the black kitten. The small cat arched it's back, and rubbed it against her hand, coaxing another laugh from her.

Rukawa stared at Jesse as she continued to play with the kitten. He was amazed at how easily laughter came from her lips, how she could find something funny in anything and everything. _How can she be so cheerful all the time, _he wondered to himself. _There's nothing to laugh about in the world anyway, except maybe when Hanamichi makes a fool of himself, and even then it isn't that funny to me. _

It was only then that he realized Jesse was looking at him, and there was a bemused expression on her face, a small smile curled up on her lips. He cocked an eyebrow upwards. "Naze?"

Jesse grinned a little more, and shrugged. "I was just thinking about something."

"And what would that be?"

Jesse smiled a little, and turned away from him. "You know, Hanamichi was right when he nicknamed you 'kitsune', and not just because you look a little like one."

Rukawa stiffened a little, but remained silent. _Why would she bring that up? _

"When I was a little girl, I used to live in a big villa in South Africa," Jesse continued, completely oblivious to his silence – or perhaps intently ignoring it. "That was before my father was assigned as the Ambassador of South Africa to the United States. Anyway, like every other kid I asked for a pet, in my case, a pet fox. After much prodding and wheedling and whining, Dad gave in and brought home this beautiful kit with sparkly blue-gray eyes, a coal-black body and white paws with a white-tipped tail. 

"At first it was pretty hard for me to get Ferris – that was the name of the kit – to like me. He was always running away and hiding, or just staring at me from some high place where I couldn't reach him. It took me a while to get him to trust me, but in the end, it was worth my while and hard work. There was even a time when he'd sleep with me in my bed, like a warm fluffy pillow."

Rukawa didn't see the point in it all, though some part of his heart said he did. "Why are you telling me this?"

Now Jesse turned back to him, and her expression was rather solemn, an expression he had not thought she would be able to produce. "Because you and Ferris are a little alike," she answered him softly. "Just like Ferris, you're hard-to-reach, and although you may deny it, you're always running away from affection. I don't know why you're like that, and I suppose it isn't my right to know, but…you can't keep away from it forever, Rukawa Kaede. 'No man is an island', as we say in the States, and I learned that the hard way too. You can't keep on relying on yourself forever. If you do that you're just going to break yourself. That isn't going to do you any good."

"What are you trying to say?" Rukawa asked, his voice edged with more ice than usual. "Don't tell me how I should live my life. You don't know anything about it."

Jesse shrugged. "I don't, and I won't pretend that I do. But I can tell that we're both the same here," she gently pushed a finger against his chest, "and that you're just trying to cover it up by being all cool and nonchalant about it. We're both hurting, maybe you more than me, but you can't bear it all by yourself. You've got lots of friends; why won't you learn to trust them?"

Rukawa smirked. "Friends? I don't have any friends. I don't even have parents. How am I supposed to trust anyone but myself?"

"But you trust Coach Anzai, don't you? And you trust the rest of Team Shohoku, right?"

"Maybe, but Anzai-sensei IS my coach, so I have to trust him. And as for my teammates, that's only on the court."

"So are you saying that you prefer to be a loner?"

"Maybe I am."

Jesse sighed, and shook her head. "You know, this is one of those times when I think you're an absolutely hopeless case, but the more I think about what you've said, the more I believe you're wrong." She got up, giving the kitten one last pat on the head before glancing at him again, her dark brown eyes glimmering in the waning afternoon light. "You're going to have to hit that brick wall sooner or later, but when it does, I hope that what I said will be of some help." And with that, she turned her back on him, and skated away, leaving him to ponder on her words.


End file.
